Madden NFL 16 News Post

Madden NFL 16 Cover Vote Features Gronk, P. Peterson, Odell Beckham Jr. Antonio Brown

08:50 AM - May 4, 2015 by Steve_OS

The Madden NFL 16 cover vote has already started on mobile devices, courtesy of Madden NFL Mobile (download here for Android devices, here for iOS devices). Users can vote from 4 cover athlete candidates.

New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson, New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown are the players to choose from.

First-round voting closes on Monday, May 11th, at 3 a.m. ET with the two finalists being announced on Tuesday, May 12th. On Wednesday, May 13th, users will be able to vote on the cover athlete all day, through the ESPN website, with the winner of the Madden NFL 16 cover to be announced that same evening at 6:00 PM ET on SportsCenter.

Thanks to NAMEisCHASE for the heads up!

Who would you like to see on the cover of Madden NFL 16?

UPDATE: Voting is now available in Madden Ultimate Team on Madden NFL 15 as well!

Here's how to vote.

HOW TO VOTE WITH MADDEN NFL MOBILE

Players will receive a Vote Collectible the first time they log in to Madden NFL Mobile each day.

Cover Vote Collectibles complete one of four repeatable Cover Vote Sets, so that players can vote over and over again for the Madden NFL 16 cover athlete.

These Collectibles cannot be auctioned.

Players can also cast votes by completing four daily Live Events (one Live Event every six hours). For every successful Live Event completion, players will be awarded one Vote Collectible to be added to the finalist set in which the player wants to vote for and a chance of winning one Cover Athlete Finalist Collectible. Add this collectible to a set to unlock an 88 OVR version of the Cover Athlete Finalist.

The winning Cover Athlete will be boosted to a 99 OVR at the time of the cover reveal. Ten Cover Athlete Finalist Collectibles are required for each set, and the can be auctioned.

Live Events are unlimited play, meaning unlimited voting, as long as players have stamina.

HOW TO VOTE WITH MADDEN ULTIMATE TEAM

Console players will receive one Cover Vote Collectible the first time they log in to Madden Ultimate Team (MUT) during the week. This and other Cover Vote Collectibles can be used to complete Cover Vote Sets. There is one Set for each of the four semifinalists.

Some information from the press release.

Quote:


	All the competitors in this year�s contest are highlight-making machines, delivering some of the greatest plays on the gridiron every single week. Fans will have the opportunity to create these moments for themselves in Madden NFL 16 and Be the Playmaker in the battle for Air Supremacy. Intuitive new tools for quarterbacks, receivers and defensive backs bring the passing game to new levels, and now the battle between the offense and defense is yours to win.

Madden NFL 16 screenshot gallery - Click to view

Game: Madden NFL 16Reader Score: 7/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS3 / PS4 / Xbox 360 / Xbox OneVotes for game: 24 - View All

Madden NFL 16 Videos

Member Comments

# 21 ASUBoy93 @ 05/04/15 04:32 PM

To those saying that ODB only had one catch this season and doesn't deserve to be on the cover; he had 91 receptions for 1305 yards and 12 TD in just 12 games.

Also, I actually like the cover vote. And the cover athlete is important, in a way, as it is essentially supposed to represent the biggest names in the NFL from the prior seasons. I wish we had the full 32-man field instead of just these four though. PP doesn't deserve to be a finalist over a lot of players.

# 22 MajorSupreme @ 05/04/15 05:27 PM

Anyone. Anyone but Gronk. The last thing he needs is that God-forsaken curse.

# 23 kjcheezhead @ 05/04/15 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MajorSupreme


	Anyone. Anyone but Gronk. The last thing he needs is that God-forsaken curse.

Gronk would be hilarious. There was a recent thread discussing an interview where he said he prefers to play NHL. He says madden is boring. I'm rooting for him just for the irony there.

# 24 Herschie @ 05/04/15 07:21 PM

Too bad Cutler isn't on the list. The Madden Curse would strike him, he'd break a nail in the preseason, and the Bears would have a shot at the playoffs.

# 25 jfsolo @ 05/04/15 07:47 PM

Quote:


	All the competitors in this year�s contest are highlight-making machines, delivering some of the greatest plays on the gridiron every single week. Fans will have the opportunity to create these moments for themselves in Madden NFL 16 and Be the Playmaker in the battle for Air Supremacy. Intuitive new tools for quarterbacks, receivers and defensive backs bring the passing game to new levels, and now the battle between the offense and defense is yours to win.

As a User vs CPU player only, my hope is that the CPU-opponents and User teammates- can, 1. use these tools at all, and 2. use these tools at a high level. I also hope that these tools aren't absurdly overpowered for the User.

If they make a, "This is only for User controlled players" statement, that will be a catastrophic failure.

# 26 NDAlum @ 05/04/15 07:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jfsolo


	As a User vs CPU player only, my hope is that the CPU-opponents and User teammates- can, 1. use these tools at all, and 2. use these tools at a high level. I also hope that these tools aren't absurdly overpowered for the User. If they make a, "This is only for User controlled players" statement, that will be a catastrophic failure.

If the CPU AI doesn't utilize the feature a catastrophic failure fits what I'm feeling perfectly.

# 27 4thQtrStre5S @ 05/04/15 08:11 PM

The cover vote, IMO, is a BS...Amazing how last year the main feature was the run game, and out of all the great players to vote on, 2 RB's make both covers..SMH...I smell a rat...

CB Peterson won't make the cover because he is a CB and this year appears to be about more passing abilities...SMH...We need the fundamentals of WR?DB interaction, as well as OL/DL interaction...

I fear another over-hyped pre-release and the general overall let down on release...I really, truly hope I am wrong...

# 28 SageInfinite @ 05/04/15 08:56 PM

I know I'm in the minority, but I'd prefer action shots for sports games. Example

Or if you're going to go with a cover boy, at least choose and action shot from in a game.
Example

It just makes for a better cover imo. All this cover vote **** is corny, but it's all good. It's becoming more clear every year that I am not the target audience for Madden. They get new customers every year, and that's who matters to them.

# 29 Sheba2011 @ 05/04/15 11:12 PM

This looks like EA really wanted Gronk on the cover but had to keep their "vote" (which I think is a total sham each year) so they chose 3 random guys to go up against him. It doesn't really matter who anyone votes for EA is still going to pick who is on the cover. Last year Richard Sherman was the biggest name in football there was no way he was going to lose that vote, even though the majority of the country outside of Seattle can't stand the guy.

# 30 oneamongthefence @ 05/04/15 11:48 PM

This is the most lackluster Madden vote to date. Why not just go Peterson and Brown in a reverse of Madden 10? Gronk is injury prone so he probably won't last the year and OBJR could be a one bit wonder. Patrick Peterson is hasn't hit that greatness tier yet and Antonio Brown isn't a household name yet.

# 31 SageInfinite @ 05/05/15 12:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Focus10


	Nah thats pretty lame and boring, there is reason those type of covers stopped in the 90s

Yeah because this is so much more exciting

foh. Just my opinion, I stated that I knew I was in the minority at the beginning of my post.

# 32 mestevo @ 05/05/15 02:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul Heyman Guy


	Let's face it, OBJ OR Gronk will be the cover athlete based upon the new "Air Supremacy" thing. So Odell's one handed catch would make for a great cover, and Gronk in mid spike would also make a great cover as well.

...and based on the fact that they're easily much more popular than the other two due to both their markets and media exposure.

# 33 Hassan Darkside @ 05/05/15 05:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SageInfinite


	Yeah because this is so much more exciting foh. Just my opinion, I stated that I knew I was in the minority at the beginning of my post.

That cover man...

# 34 bad_philanthropy @ 05/05/15 08:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SageInfinite


	Yeah because this is so much more exciting foh. Just my opinion, I stated that I knew I was in the minority at the beginning of my post.

I agree with you. I think the cover athlete idea is played out and dated. It's not quite in the area of man with gun front and center, but it's a lame method of attracting attention. "Look at what football player's picture is on the box this year!" Evidently it works though, so I guess we won't be seeing the action shots (which I also prefer) any time soon.

# 35 kehlis @ 05/05/15 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SageInfinite


	Yeah because this is so much more exciting foh. Just my opinion, I stated that I knew I was in the minority at the beginning of my post.

I don't think you're in the minority at all.

# 36 jfsolo @ 05/05/15 07:18 PM

I'm 100% digital for all games now, so the cover is completely irrelevant to me now as opposed to just being mostly irrelevant like it was when I still bought physical copies. With that being said, I agree with those who prefer the action covers. They were way better, IMO, than the singular shot of a cover boy.

# 37 DeuceDouglas @ 05/05/15 09:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve_OS


	All the competitors in this year�s contest are highlight-making machines, delivering some of the greatest plays on the gridiron every single week. Fans will have the opportunity to create these moments for themselves in Madden NFL 16 and Be the Playmaker in the battle for Air Supremacy. Intuitive new tools for quarterbacks, receivers and defensive backs bring the passing game to new levels, and now the battle between the offense and defense is yours to win..

Yikes. The bold just screams to me something similar to the D-Line button mini-game that was implemented last year. I pray that's not the case but that's what I'm taking from that. The battle isn't and should never be "mine to win" the battle is between my virtual guy and another virtual guy, they should determine who wins.

# 38 SageInfinite @ 05/05/15 09:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeuceDouglas


	Yikes. The bold just screams to me something similar to the D-Line button mini-game that was implemented last year. I pray that's not the case but that's what I'm taking from that. The battle isn't and should never be "mine to win" the battle is between my virtual guy and another virtual guy, they should determine who wins.

Unfortunately that's not how Tiburon designs Madden. It's a video game first, and a "sim" second, or third, or fourth.....

# 39 CM Hooe @ 05/05/15 10:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeuceDouglas


	The battle isn't and should never be "mine to win" the battle is between my virtual guy and another virtual guy, they should determine who wins.

To that end - should a user be allowed control a running back? A quarterback?

If so - why not a wide receiver, cornerback, or pass rusher? What's the difference?

If not - that's a perfectly reasonable opinion, but (the limited in-game coach mode options notwithstanding) that's not the way Madden or any other mainstream console sports game has ever been built. They all expect the user to do something - to make the passes and shoot the ball, to swing the bat and throw the pitches - in order for his team to succeed. The ratings influence the result, yes, but the action doesn't begin to happen without user input. The "virtual guys do all the battles and not me" idea is not a useful expectation to hold these games to because it violates a core tenet of the game's experience.

To be clear, this is not me hating on coach mode. I thought Head Coach 09 was fantastic, and coach simulators / text-based sports games can be great. I also think having coach mode options in Madden is great. All I'm saying here is Madden isn't, has never been, and will never be purely a coach simulator and shouldn't be treated purely as such.

# 40 Skyboxer @ 05/06/15 01:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jfsolo


	As a User vs CPU player only, my hope is that the CPU-opponents and User teammates- can, 1. use these tools at all, and 2. use these tools at a high level. I also hope that these tools aren't absurdly overpowered for the User. If they make a, "This is only for User controlled players" statement, that will be a catastrophic failure.

Unless past history isn't a factor this time... expect a failure. EA's been all about the User controlling everything (Due to no clue how to program decent AI) in all past replies about questions regarding CPU AI.

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Madden NFL 16 Cover Vote Features Gronk, P. Peterson, Odell Beckham Jr. Antonio Brown