Should Josh Allen Have Been the Cover Athlete of Madden 24
Josh Allen was one of the most entertaining players to watch in all of football last season. Along with being the Buffalo Bills’ leading passer in the 2022 season, he also came only 57 yards short of leading the team in rushing yards as well. He finished the season with 4283 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions through the air while rushing for 762 yards and 7 touchdowns.
Allen would lead the Bills to a 13-3 record in the regular season and would be a member of the Pro Bowl team. Allen and the Bills would get past the Miami Dolphins in the Wild Card round by a final score of 34-31. However, they would be bested by the Cincinnati Bengals in the Divisional round by a final score of 27-10.
Although the season ended on a sour note for the Bills as they once again fell just short of a potential Super Bowl appearance, Allen would make history in the offseason. Recently, he became the first player in Bills’ history to ever grace the cover of Madden.
Allen would take to Twitter to post about the announcement saying, “A childhood dream come true”. However, interestingly, there would be an error made on the cover. The third horizontal bar on Allen’s facemask is cut off. What makes this mistake even more odd is that Allen does not wear a facemask with a third horizontal bar. Despite the error made on the cover, this is still a huge accomplishment for Allen.
Other Players That Could Have Gotten the Nod
While Allen had an incredible season in 2022 and is more than deserving of being named the cover athlete of Madden 24, there are a few other players that also had a very strong case to make an appearance on the cover.
The first player that could have been on the cover of Madden 24 was Travis Kelce. Last year, Kelce was one of the most talked about players in all of football. He finished the regular season with 110 receptions for 1338 yards and 12 touchdowns. He would also be named to the Pro Bowl and All-Pro team. Kelce followed up his incredible run in the regular season with 27 catches for 257 yards and 4 touchdowns in a playoff run that would culminate in a Super Bowl victory.
The Super Bowl was deemed as the “Kelce Bowl” as Travis was taking on his brother Jason on the NFL’s biggest stage. Pairing all of this with the Kelce brothers launching one of the most successful sports podcasts in the world last year and Patrick Mahomes already being a cover athlete, this would have been a perfect opportunity to give Travis the nod.
Another player that could have served as this year’s cover athlete and made an appearance in the Super Bowl is Jalen Hurts. Last year, Hurts had a breakout season and quickly emerged as one of the most talented quarterbacks in the league. He finished his regular season campaign with 3701 yards, 22 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions through the air and 760 yards for 13 touchdowns on the ground. He would make his first appearance in the Pro Bowl and was also named to the All-Pro team for the first time in his career.
In the postseason, Hurts would throw for 579 yards, 3 touchdowns, and made it through the playoffs without throwing a single interception. While the Eagles fell short of their ultimate goal of a Super Bowl, this was an amazing season for Hurts, and he is now regarded as one of the top quarterbacks in the league.
The final player that could have received the nod to be the cover athlete of Madden 24 is Justin Jefferson. Jefferson has established himself as arguably the best wide receiver in the league only three seasons into his NFL career. Last season, Jefferson would be near the top of the league in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. He finished the year with 128 catches for 1809 yards and 8 touchdowns in the regular season.
As a result of this incredible showing in the regular season, Jefferson would be named to both the Pro Bowl and the All-Pro team. In the postseason, he would have a rough showing of 7 catches for 47 yards in the Wild Card round against the New York Giants. While Jefferson and the Vikings would be sent home in the first round, this was still an amazing season for one of the league’s most entertaining players.
Despite all of these players being worthy of being the cover athlete of Madden 24, Allen was still well deserving of getting the nod. With the very solid offseason additions that the Bills made, they are once again poised to make a deep playoff run, and this could finally be the season where Allen is named as the league’s MVP.
