Madden 12 cover

Voting for the "Madden NFL 12" cover subject has reached the final four.

Packers QB Aaron Rodgers(notes), Browns RB Peyton Hillis, Eagles QB Michael Vick(notes) and Vikings RB Adrian Peterson all remain from the original pool of 32, which fans began voting for on March 21.

In a March Madness-style bracket, Rodgers ? who was the No. 1 seed on his side of the bracket, will compete against Hillis, a No. 10 seed, for a chance to reach the finals. Hillis has defeated Vikings WR Sidney Rice(notes), Falcons QB Matt Ryan(notes) and Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles(notes).

Peterson bounced Chargers QB Philip Rivers(notes), the top seed, and Saints QB Drew Brees(notes) to reach the finals, where he will face No. 3 Michael Vick, who has breezed through the tournament thus far.


Voting for the semifinals will take place from April 11-18, followed by championship voting from April 18-25.

Letting people vote for things is how America ended up with Jimmy Carter, purple M&Ms and Taylor Hicks. It's also why EA Sports will be stuck with either Michael Vick(notes) or Peyton Hillis(notes) (yes, Peyton Hillis) on the cover of Madden '12.
The two players are in the finals of the Madden '12 cover vote, having made it through four rounds of a 32-player bracket on ESPN.com. From now until April 27, fans can vote for either the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback or the Cleveland Browns running back as the new cover athlete for the biggest video game in sports. The winner will be announced that afternoon on "SportsNation."
Vick was a No. 3 seed in his 16-player bracket and easily outpaced DeMarcus Ware(notes), Andre Johnson(notes), Patrick Willis(notes) and Adrian Peterson to reach the final. The 10th-seeded Hillis had a Butler-like run through his bracket, squeaking through an early matchup against Matt Ryan(notes) and then upsetting top-seeded Aaron Rodgers(notes) to reach the final.
It's hard to imagine EA Sports had a white running back or convicted felon in mind when it started this contest. I'm guessing it figured it was in the bag for Aaron Rodgers and everything else was just easy publicity. Now it'll have a general unknown or the most divisive player in the sport as the winner. I don't envy the marketing executive who has to explain to his bosses why Hillis may grace the cover or the PR person who will have to face an onslaught of criticism for celebrating Vick.
But is it really so bad? I tend to think things couldn't have worked out much better for EA. A Hillis win will bring a whirlwind of positive attention to him and the game. Vick's victory would be accompanied by some controversy, which is not always a negative.
By and large, the people who are going to be upset about Vick being on the cover of a video game aren't going to be the same people who are buying said game. Any negative effect the Vick cover will have on sales will be made up for by the publicity generated by having him on the cover. This is one of those circumstances where all press is good press.

Cleveland Browns punishing running back Peyton Hillis(notes) has been selected as the new face of the popular John Madden video game.


Hillis was voted in by fans, Madden bruiser: Peyton Hillis voted onto game's cover - ESPNto beat out Philadelphia Eagles star quarterback Michael Vick(notes) for the Madden 2012 cover.

Hillis beat out Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice(notes), Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan(notes), Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles(notes) and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers(notes).

The Browns boosted Hillis' chances through an extensive online campaign.

"I think it shows both of us how popular we are, even if we thought we weren't," Hillis told ESPN.com during an online chat. "Me, being a nobody. And Vicks' situation, being down and up. For people to believe in this so-called curse, I can't wait to prove people wrong. From what I believe and where I am in my spiritual life, it would be good to prove them wrong in that sense."

Knowing the folks at EA Sports, they've probably put more effort into allowing fans to select this year's cover star than improving the game itself. I think it's about time to update the engine and implement physics-based player collisions. The hockey games are already doing it and NBA Elite 11, before it was canceled, was going to do it too. I think it's only right that they begin doing it with their football games and stop being so lazy year-after-year. I mean they've already monopolized the NFL video game industry, so why not create something incredible to make it worthwhile?