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An Extremely Scientific and Not-At-All-Overly-Dramatic Investigation of the Madden Curse

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For decades, football fans have debated one of the most important questions in sports—not whether overtime rules are fair, not whether the NFL should bring back those aggressively shiny 2000s jerseys, but something far more urgent: Does the Madden Curse really exist? And more importantly, should star players start refusing EA Sports’ calls the way we all avoid extended car warranties? Let us examine the evidence…

The Case For the Curse

The Madden Curse, in theory, is simple: a player appears on the cover of Madden, and something catastrophic happens the following season. Injury. Bad stats. A sudden inability to catch footballs, or in some cases, the sudden ability to catch only footballs thrown by the other team.

Some examples have become legendary. You can’t talk about the curse without mentioning the dramatic tales of players who went from “unstoppable MVP machine” to “guy on the sideline Googling physical therapy clinics.” Even skeptics have to admit the pattern can look a little spooky—like a sports-themed ghost whispering, “Nice ACL you got there… shame if something happened to it.”

The Case Against the Curse

Skeptics argue that star players get hurt because football is, scientifically speaking, a sport where enormous humans collide at highway speeds. They claim injuries are “normal” and “predictable” and not the result of a digital box with a picture of you pointing heroically into the middle distance.

These skeptics are, of course, no fun at parties.

Scientific Investigation (Not Peer Reviewed; Honestly Not Even Self Reviewed)

In conducting our personal research, we employed cutting-edge methodologies:

* Watching YouTube highlight compilations

* Googling “Is the Madden Curse real??”

* Squinting dramatically at spreadsheets

Our findings are groundbreaking: sometimes players get better after being on the cover. Sometimes they get worse. Sometimes they become memes. In other words, the Madden Curse behaves exactly like my houseplants—occasionally thriving, occasionally collapsing, and completely unpredictable.

Final Verdict

Does the Madden Curse truly exist? Maybe. Maybe not. But it’s definitely fun to blame when your favorite player suddenly forgets how ankles work.

And until science proves otherwise, we should all treat the Madden cover like a mysterious ancient artifact—admire from afar, but maybe don’t touch it unless you’ve recently updated your insurance policy.

So yes, the Madden Curse exists, at least in our hearts, our memes, and the overly dramatic sports takes we write on the internet.

A Quick History of the First Slam Dunk Contest(s)

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Did you know there were two “first-ever” slam dunk contests in the history of professional basketball?

The first first-ever NBA Slam Dunk Contest took place during the 1976 ABA All-Star Game, not in the NBA itself. It was held in Denver, Colorado, as a way to showcase the flashier style of play that the ABA was known for before it merged with the NBA. The NBA then officially introduced their first-ever contest in 1984 during All-Star Weekend, also in the city in Denver. Both contests played a huge role in making dunking an essential part of basketball culture.

Julius “Dr. J” Erving’s free-throw line dunk in the 1976 ABA Slam Dunk Contest is one of the most iconic and influential dunks in basketball history. It was a defining moment that cemented dunking as an art form and set the stage for future high-flyers like Michael Jordan, Vince Carter, and Zach LaVine. For that reason alone, the ABA’s first-ever dunk contest is more significant than the NBA’s first effort (even though a 34-year-old Dr. J performed the same dunk in that one as well). However, it’s unquestionable that once Michael Jordan started participating, the NBA took dunk contests to a whole other level.  

Key Moments of the 1976 ABA Slam Dunk Contest:

  • Julius “Dr. J” Erving won the contest with his iconic free-throw line dunk, which later inspired future dunkers like Michael Jordan.
  • Other participants included David Thompson, Artis Gilmore, George Gervin, and Larry Kenon.
  • The contest was not a head-to-head elimination format, but rather a point-based system where each player attempted five dunks.
  • Dr. J’s free-throw line dunk was the highlight, as it was the first time a player had attempted such a dunk in a major event.

Key Moments of the NBA Slam Dunk Contest (1984)

  • Larry Nance won, defeating Julius Erving in the final round.
  • Nance introduced the two-ball dunk, where he dunked two basketballs in one leap.
  • The contest was structured as a head-to-head elimination tournament.

Now, go forth and conquer (slam dunk videos on YouTube.com we mean).

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