NFL fans call for John Madden to feature on cover of Madden 23

The NFL community is mourning the loss of legendary NFL figure John Madden. Madden tragically and suddenly passed away Tuesday at age 85.

Madden is known across every generation for his Oakland Raiders coaching career, larger-than-life commentary, or his video game franchise, Madden.

The Madden franchise has picked a new cover athlete for its game every year since 2001. Before that, Madden himself was the cover for the franchise between 1988 and 2000.

Since his passing, fans of the franchise have taken to social media to exclaim that Madden should grace the cover of Madden 2023.

NFL fans call for John Madden to be the cover of Madden 23

Al Michaels and John Madden at the 12th Annual ESPY Awards - Show

The most liked tweet to come out in support of Madden being the video game's cover star was from Ari Meirov. Meirov works for Pro Football Focus and directs his tweet towards the franchise, telling them to make it happen.

Meirov wasn't alone, as countless others were in support.

Among others to voice their support include professional YouTubers. In this instance, "Zirksee," as he goes by, is best known for his Madden gameplay on YouTube.

Support for the Hall of Famer getting the respect he deserves is popular. USA Today reporter Tyler Dragon was amongst those supporters.

One fan even suggested the franchise rename its game entirely in its next release. The suggested name by Rob Waziak is the same one the company used in their first Madden game released in 1988.

One fan posted a cover image of every Madden cover ever. They argue there will be no objections to their claim of choosing Madden as the cover.

Alfredo Brown took his beliefs a step further. He believes the franchise should try and make it so Patt Summerall and Madden can commentate over games.

That would be truly revolutionary if EA Sports could find enough archived footage to make it work.

Anthony Faulds took to Twitter to share his custom design for what a Madden cover could look like next year.

Given how beloved Madden was, it's hard to find people who disagree with writer Brendan Sugrue's take.

One fan came up with some incredible ideas that would likely draw in many buyers. Recreating Madden's greatest moments as a coach is an innovative idea we've seen companies like 2K Sports do before in NBA 2K11 for Michael Jordan.

Finally, a fan called for Madden to make the cover of John Madden on every edition. Rather than paying extra for a deluxe edition with him on the cover, he should be on every edition.

Time will tell if EA Sports will follow through with their fan requests. The new Madden is likely to be released in August of 2022, given its history of release dates.