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RGIII has an idea for a Madden 25 cover where he wants to piggyback on Taylor Swift's relationship with Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce to feature the singer on the upcoming release of the popular game.
The former NFL quarterback pointed to the success of the superstar's new release on Spotify, which broke the previous record for the most streamed album in a day in just 12 hours. RGIII said, probably not incorrectly, that a cover featuring her would probably make it the most popular Madden release of all time. He even provided a mock-up of a cover that featured Taylor Swift's famous kiss with Travis Kelce after he won the Super Bowl.
NFL fans were not too sold on the idea, though, and commented that while the idea might be hilarious, it should not be entertained. They took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to comment. Here is a selection of some of them.
There were others on the platform, though, who liked RGIII's idea. They thought that Taylor Swift's appearance on Madden would open a new front in the game's popularity. Here are some of those reactions.
"If it came out in 4 different editions they would sell out"
"ngl I’d buy it"
"Let's make this happen"
Breaking down the Madden curse: Why Taylor Swift might want to nip RGIII's idea in the bud?
While appearing on the Madden cover is definitely an honor, Taylor Swift might want to decline this opportunity. Not for herself, but for her boyfriend. The game is associated with a popular curse where everyone who is featured tends to have poor seasons or suffer from injury thereafter.
The whole thing started in 1999. Prior to that, John Madden featured on the cover. Star running back for the San Francisco 49ers, Garrison Hearst, became the first player featured. The next season, he helped his team reach the playoffs where he broke his ankle. He would miss two years of football because of that.
The next player featured was Barry Sanders. But he never appeared on the cover because he retired before the season. It cemented the 'bad luck' notion associated with Madden. They replaced him with Dorsey Levens, but the Packers player would go on to suffer a knee injury that season.
Since then, others like Marshall Faulk, Ray Lewis, and Drew Brees, to name some great players, who struggled either in the regular season or the playoffs because of the supposed 'Madden Curse'. Therefore, if Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce appeared together as RGIII suggested, it might not end up as well as it did this season for the Chiefs. That is something she would definitely like to avoid.
But, perhaps, it does not work with Kansas City players. Patrick Mahomes, who won the Super Bowl in 2020, was featured on Madden leading into the season. If that charm can rub off on his tight end as well, there is no reason why he and his girlfriend cannot appear on the cover.
It would mark a departure from only having players grace the game, but RGIII is probably not wrong in saying that Taylor Swift will sell more of the game than anyone who has ever come before.
