Receiving the opportunity to grace the front of the Madden NFL cover is something any NFL player would consider a grand honor. This year, New York Giants’ wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has been selected to compete for votes against Antonio Brown, Patrick Peterson and Rob Gronkowski for that distinction.
Beckham sits among a crowd of some pretty prestigious NFL players who turned heads in 2014. Brown was no slouch for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He put up 129 receptions for 1,698 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2014.
Peterson totaled 45 tackles and three interceptions in 994 snaps this past season. Though, he did struggle by his previous standards.
Could Beckham beat his veteran competition and be the face we see on the 2016 Madden cover? He piled up 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns during a rookie campaign that saw him earn the Offensive Rookie of the Year award.
Certainly the best rookie in the 2014 draft class, it is not too shocking to see Beckham’s name listed among the four semi-finalists. May 11 concludes first-round of the voting with the two finalists being revealed on May 12. The winner will be announced on May 13 on ESPN’s SportsCenter.
Note that there are no quarterbacks listed among the top four this year. Last year saw Seattle Seahawks’ cornerback Richard Sherman beat out Colin Kaepernick and Cam Newton to earn his 2015 cover.
Photo: USA Today Sports