Madden NFL 25 News Post

Madden NFL 25 Cover Vote Down to B. Sanders vs. J. Rice and A. Peterson vs. A. Foster

06:41 PM - April 10, 2013 by Steve_OS

Hall of Famers and Perennial Pro Bowlers Face Off in Madden NFL 25 Cover Vote Semifinals

Barry Sanders, Jerry Rice, Adrian Peterson and Arian Foster Square Off, Voting Now Open at ESPN.com/MaddenVote

Today ESPN SportsNation announced the semifinal matchups in the Madden NFL 25 Cover Vote. Barry Sanders will take on Jerry Rice in the Old School bracket, while Adrian Peterson and Arian Foster will battle in the New School bracket. The winners of each bracket will advance to the finals, with the Madden NFL 25 cover athlete to be named live on SportsNation on Wed, April 25. Voting highlights from the quarterfinals include:

2.1 million votes this round, 37.1 million votes overall
Adrian Peterson posted the largest margin of victory, taking 70% of the vote against Robert Griffin III
Arian Foster had the slimmest margin of victory, defeating Russell Wilson 52% to 48%

Both Rice and Sanders have been steamrolling the competition thus far in the Old School bracket, and the two have seemed destined for a collision course since the early rounds. Now it�s up to the fans to decide how the greatest receiver of all-time stacks up against arguably the most electrifying running back to ever lace up a pair of cleats. The New School bracket is dominated by running backs, and will pit Adrian Peterson�s power against Arian Foster�s elusiveness for a shot at the big prize.

We�re only one round from the finale, and fans are invited to cast their votes at ESPN.com/MaddenVote through their PC or mobile devices. For the chance to �Maximize� votes, ESPN and Madden NFL 25 have collaborated with Pepsi MAX to promote Twitter live voting every Tuesday throughout the Madden Cover Vote campaign, where tweets with each player�s respective Cover Vote hashtag will count as two votes. Double votes ends at midnight ET each Tuesday.

Game: Madden NFL 25Reader Score: 5/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS3 / PS4 / Xbox 360 / Xbox OneVotes for game: 54 - View All

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Member Comments

# 1 Trick13 @ 04/10/13 06:56 PM

I think it is interesting that despite the NFL being a "pass happy" league, 3 of the top 4 guys are RBs.
I didn't follow the brackets because I think the cover vote thing is superfluous. So was the bracket RB heavy?

# 2 Mauer4MVP @ 04/10/13 07:52 PM

So Peterson is a lock for the title game. I don't think anybody deserves it more than him.

# 3 Nexgenrulz @ 04/10/13 09:47 PM

Why is Barry Sanders in the running? Last time I checked Emmitt Smith is the NFL's all time leading rusher. I guess 18,355 yards, 3 Super Bowl rings, league MVP & Super Bowl MVP isn't enough to get a mention for the cover of Madden. Proving once again that Madden doesn't represent the game of football.

# 4 JaymeeAwesome @ 04/10/13 10:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nexgenrulz


	Why is Barry Sanders in the running? Last time I checked Emmitt Smith is the NFL's all time leading rusher. I guess 18,355 yards, 3 Super Bowl rings, league MVP & Super Bowl MVP isn't enough to get a mention for the cover of Madden. Proving once again that Madden doesn't represent the game of football.

Sounds like homer talk. Do you not understand that if Barry Sanders played the same amount of games that emmitt smith did, that Smith wouldn't be mentioned in the same sentence?

# 5 sparkdawg777 @ 04/10/13 11:03 PM

Not only that but emmitt smith played with arguably one of the best cowboy teams of all time.

I really hope Peterson wins after that comeback season.

# 6 jWILL253 @ 04/11/13 01:14 AM

So glad Russell Wilson didn't win.

It's so obvious who's gonna win, though. We're gonna have a dual Barry Sanders/AP cover this year...

# 7 serrano53 @ 04/11/13 02:45 AM

haha no barry please he never won a ring

# 8 R9NALD9 @ 04/11/13 03:05 AM

Strange how some people can't recognise the pure insane talent Barry Sanders was...in my mind the best RB to play the game considering the team he played on.

# 9 Nexgenrulz @ 04/11/13 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaymee13


	Sounds like homer talk. Do you not understand that if Barry Sanders played the same amount of games that emmitt smith did, that Smith wouldn't be mentioned in the same sentence?

The key word in your sentence being "if"! But he didn't. He quit. Emmitt Smith has the numbers. Pure and simple. The greatest running back to ever play the game! Hard to argue the undisputed facts.

# 10 Nexgenrulz @ 04/11/13 05:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sparkdawg777


	Not only that but emmitt smith played with arguably one of the best cowboy teams of all time. I really hope Peterson wins after that comeback season.

I do believe that football is a team sport. It takes more than one man to be successful.

# 11 Gosens6 @ 04/11/13 07:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by serrano53


	haha no barry please he never won a ring

Are you even..?

I just can't..

# 12 Cleveland Rocks @ 04/11/13 09:13 AM

Hopefuly it Rice Barry was on the cover in 2000 and we had a Lion on the cover last year. I don't think Rice has ever be on the cover.

# 13 cuttingteeth @ 04/11/13 09:59 AM

The RB's will win and be on the cover, and then it'll look rigged because of what they have told us so far as a focus in the game (ball carriers, foot planting, change of direction, etc).

# 14 BezO @ 04/11/13 12:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nexgenrulz


	Why is Barry Sanders in the running? Last time I checked Emmitt Smith is the NFL's all time leading rusher. I guess 18,355 yards, 3 Super Bowl rings, league MVP & Super Bowl MVP isn't enough to get a mention for the cover of Madden. Proving once again that Madden doesn't represent the game of football.

Because Sanders is one of, if not the most exciting RB ever caught on film. From a "working with what you have" point of view, he's at the top of most people's list.

Better? Everyone has an opinion based on their own criteria. For me, I look for a combination of quantity & quality production. Though Smith has more yards, Sanders was more efficient AND more exciting while playing long enough for me to disregard Smith's advantage in games played and higher totals.

And like you said, it's a team sport. Some of those accolades come with being on better teams. As a RB, you'll get more carries & yards on a winning team. MVPs are almost always on the best teams. Better teams go to SBs, win, and have SB MVPs.

Other reasons Sanders impresses me more:
-The 2nd half of Smith's career looks average next to Sanders'. In fact, Sanders got better as time went on, rushing for 2K in his 9th year and 1,500 in his tenth. Yes, Smith played longer, but Sanders was at the top of his game longer.
-Sanders was named all pro 2 more times than Smith, playing 5 less years.
-Sanders is one of 6 RBs to rush for 2K. And he did it from the I-formation after many attributed his prior success to the run & shoot, spread formations.

If this was a vote for most productive players, I'm sure Smith would be in the mix. Madden covers seem to be more about popularity. Being arguably the more entertaining player, Sanders will always beat Smith in these types of votes.

# 15 roadman @ 04/11/13 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nexgenrulz


	I do believe that football is a team sport. It takes more than one man to be successful.

It's even more eye popping that Sanders did it with crappy teams and crappy QB's.

If you are basing it on rings, Marino shouldn't ever be in the discussion of top QB's of all time.

Just saying.

A lot to love with Barry Sanders and he left the game when he was at the top of his game.

# 16 Mauer4MVP @ 04/11/13 02:09 PM

Is Smith even top 5?

IMO, I'd take Brown, Payton, Sanders, Dickerson, and Peterson over him for sure.

Faulk and OJ are also in that conversation as well. Sayers didn't play long enough for me.

# 17 NYBorn81 @ 04/11/13 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mauer4MVP


	Is Smith even top 5? IMO, I'd take Brown, Payton, Sanders, Dickerson, and Peterson over him for sure. Faulk and OJ are also in that conversation as well. Sayers didn't play long enough for me.

This all the way. It's funny, even before Marshall Faulk got up there in terms of "best RB talk", he pretty much introduced me to the game. I was too young for Sanders and those before him, but Faulk was pretty exciting. Over time, after watching film and learning about these guys, I'd definitely rank Dickerson, Sanders, Payton, Brown & OJ in the top 5. But in a top 10 I'd definitely have Faulk & Peterson, and even still, at some point between 6 and 9, Emmitt Smith. I don't think you can disregard the numbers Smith has put up in his career.

Between Barry & Rice, it'd be nice to see them both on the cover, personally. But if I had to pick one, it's a tough choich, but I'm going with Jerry Rice.

# 18 BezO @ 04/11/13 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mauer4MVP


	Is Smith even top 5?

IMO, Sanders, Payton, Simpson, Faulk & Dickerson.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mauer4MVP


	IMO, I'd take Brown, Payton, Sanders, Dickerson, and Peterson over him for sure. Faulk and OJ are also in that conversation as well. Sayers didn't play long enough for me.

Yeah, I nixed Sayers & Peterson for not playing long enough. And I always argue that Brown's dominance MAY not translate to different eras. If Sanders was playing today, he'd still be the most agile RB in the league, making defenders look just as silly as he did in the 90s. Not sure Brown would be bullying today's players like he did in the 60s.

# 19 Roncatto @ 04/15/13 09:40 AM

At least with AP or Foster the madden curse might be an injury or a **** season.

Dread to think what will happen to Sanders or Rice.....

# 20 Mauer4MVP @ 04/15/13 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roncatto


	At least with AP or Foster the madden curse might be an injury or a **** season. Dread to think what will happen to Sanders or Rice.....

Megatron broke the curse.

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Madden NFL 25 Cover Vote Down to B. Sanders vs. J. Rice and A. Peterson vs. A. Foster