It Looks Like Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes Will Grace Cover Of 'Madden' Video Game This Year

By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston

BOSTON (CBS) -- Tom Brady is the GOAT, aka the Greatest of All Time. Perhaps you have heard?

Patrick Mahomes is the next GOAT, so the people say, even if the word "greatest" demands that only one person can fill the role, thus making it kind of an impossible/silly title to place on the 25-year-old. Nevertheless, it persists.

And given that basic background, it feels safe to assume that Brady and Mahomes -- the two GOATs ... even though only one can be the GOAT -- will be gracing the cover of the video game "Madden 22."

Madden released a teaser video on Monday that showed two goats -- regular goats, not GOATs -- emerging from a barn door. One was bigger than the other. You do the math.

Peyton Hillis -- who ran for a grand total of 1,258 yards and six touchdowns in four seasons after he graced the cover of the video game -- makes a cameo at the end of the video, which seems irrelevant to the reveal but nevertheless might help make a minor pop on social media.

Brady and Mahomes make a good choice for the cover, as the two quarterbacks at opposite ends of their careers faced off against each other in the Super Bowl last year. It marked the second time that Brady's team has foiled Mahomes' Super Bowl dreams, a path that may get a little smoother for the young QB once (if?) Brady finally retires.

Brady has been on the cover before, earning the prestigious honor after leading the Patriots on their unforgettable 28-3 comeback vs. the Falcons. Mahomes was on the cover of Madden NFL 20 two years later, after his MVP season and before he won his first Super Bowl.

In years past, talk of the so-called "Madden Curse" always came up whenever a cover athlete was discussed. That history, though, is just that -- history. The string of bad luck that followed cover athletes isn't quite comparable to what it was when the "Madden Curse" was a cultural phenomenon. (Brady won MVP at age 40 after he was on the cover, and as previously mentioned, Mahomes won the Super Bowl after appearing on the cover.)

While the news may resonate in different ways with different people for different reasons, it is nevertheless jaw-dropping that Brady is not only still playing but is still one of the most marketable draws in the entire NFL.

That Brady remains such a driver of interest for the league -- in terms of TV ratings, ticket prices, and merchandising -- speaks to his remarkable longevity and unprecedented success over the past 20-plus years.

UPDATE: The cover has been released.

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• Patrick Mahomes
• NFL
• Tom Brady