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Madden NFL 23 reveals John Madden as cover star

The iconic former coach and NFL commentator will grace the cover of Madden once more.

Donovan Erskine

June 1, 2022 7:05 AM

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Though the Madden NFL franchise gets a new entry every year ahead of the kickoff of the real-world NFL season, things are a bit different this year. With the late 2021 passing of the former head coach and analyst John Madden, many are reflecting on his far-reaching legacy, including the gaming franchise named after him. EA Sports has announced that this year, it’s returning to its roots with John Madden as the cover star for Madden NFL 23.

EA Sports announced today that John Madden will be the cover star for Madden NFL 23. Madden served as Head Coach for the Oakland Raiders from 1969-1978, where he led the team to its first Super Bowl championship. Following his retirement from coaching, Madden served as an analyst and commentator between 1979 and 2008, where his voice became synonymous with the NFL.

As the franchise’s namesake, John Madden starred on the cover of the first eleven Madden NFL games until the franchise began the tradition of putting a different player on the cover every year with Eddie George on the cover of Madden NFL 2001. More than two decades later, John Madden will once again grace the Madden cover. There are three different variations of the Madden NFL 23 cover, each highlighting a different aspect of Madden’s illustrious career. One as a coach, another as an analyst, and a third cover that features original artwork from Chuck Styles for the Digital Edition.

Madden NFL 23 also adds a new experience that sees two versions of John Madden coaching “All-Madden” teams in the 1970 Oakland Coliseum. The voice of Madden will also be used with remastered audio clips, according to EA.

EA Sports Madden NFL 23 will be released later this year, with the legendary John Madden on the cover. As we await more details on Madden NFL 23, stick with us here on Shacknews.

Donovan Erskine

News Editor

Donovan is a journalist from Maryland. His oldest gaming memory is playing Pajama Sam on his mom's desktop during weekends. Pokémon Emerald, Halo 2, and the original Star Wars Battlefront 2 were some of the most influential titles in awakening his love for video games. After interning for Shacknews throughout college, Donovan graduated from Bowie State University in 2020 with a major in broadcast journalism and joined the team full-time. He is a huge film fanatic and will talk with you about movies and games all day. You can follow him on twitter @Donimals_