However, my pick would be Edgerrin James. In his second season as a professional, James led the NFL in the number of yards he rushed for the second time in consecutive years. James also scored the fifth-highest number of touchdowns he scored rushing, and was being the top player in his fellow players in the Mut 25 coins with total yards gained from the line of scrimmage.

Could the cover have cursed him, as well? Absolutely. In the sixth game of season of 2001. James tore his ACL. In the following years, after that, he would surpass the 1.500-yard mark twice more times. He's ranked 13th in all-time total rushing yards, therefore the curse of the cover could resulted in him losing the top spot.

The most difficult decision to make so far. Rich Gannon finished in the top five for the passing yardage, touchdowns in passing, and the passer's rating. He also was the league MVP. Priest Holmes had a monster year in his debut year playing in Kansas City, leading the league in rushing yards but he couldn't make it into the top 10 for touchdowns. Curtis Martin was second in the number of rushing yards he racked up and was 5th in scoring touchdowns. Terrell Owens scored 16 touchdowns receptions and was the third player in yards.

But, Madden 253 decided to select an offensive player in Brian Urlacher. I'm sure Madden could have made the same decision. Who is better than the guy who has just broken the single-season record for sacks Michael Strahan. Madden introduced his first player who was defensive on their cover two years after along with Ray Lewis, who also could have been a great selection.

Could the cover have cursed the guy? No, not actually. Strahan was 30. in 2001. and a drop was not a surprise. His sacks total in 2001 was cut in half, but Strahan bounced back the following season to be the league's top sacks once more.

Rich Gannon shows up again on this show. As with many other players on the cover, he's fresh from the Super Bowl loss. He was ranked in the top five for passing touchdowns and passer rating. His league-leading yards total was sixth ever recorded in the history of football in the day. But in the real world, cheap Mut 25 coins selected the most exciting player in the sport. For the backup plan to be...Rich Gannon? I'm not interested in it.