10 Players Who Deserved the Madden 27 Cover Over Caleb Williams

We've officially reached that summer lull in American sports where the only major leagues we have going on are the MLB and the WNBA (thank God for the World Cup this year, too). During this time, a lot of sports fans are already starting to look forward to the upcoming season. Before we know it, the NFL will be back, and we'll all start having our fantasy drafts imminently.

Going along with this, those of us that are also gamers will start anticipating the next iteration of Madden NFL. Caleb Williams has already been announced as the cover athlete (somewhat hilariously posed in front of the Chicago skyline), but was he really the most deserving player to get the nod?

Williams and the Bears had an excellent season, and he projects to be even better in the coming year, but there are still a handful of players that have their own strong cases to be on the cover of Madden.

10 Trey McBride

The Real Baby Gronk

I get it. The tight end isn't always the sexiest position in the NFL, but if anyone is making it look good these days, it's Trey McBride. Plus, we've already seen a tight end on the cover before when Rob Gronkowski made the cut, so it's not like a TE being chosen is completely out of the realm of possibilities.

Brock Bowers is awesome, but Trey McBride has solidified himself as the best at his position at this point. No, the Cardinals weren't great, and they don't project to be this coming year either, but it's impossible to pin that on McBride at all, who has been nothing short of spectacular.

9 Fernando Mendoza

Hear Me Out!

The eyes are already probably starting to roll with this inclusion of rookie Raiders quarterback Fernando Mendoza, and I get it. He has yet to take a snap in the NFL. You also might be interested to know that I lived in Bloomington, Indiana when the Hoosiers won their national championship, and I've also now happened to relocate to Las Vegas just as Mendoza is getting his start here. Possible bias noted.

That said, IU had the most electric, magical season in NCAA history, so it would be fun to keep the dream alive with Fernando and his bubbly personality gracing the cover of Madden 27. It would even synergize perfectly with IU coach Curt Cignetti being on the cover of the NCAA game this year too. Is Mendoza more deserving than Williams? Probably not. But it still would've been a fun thing to see.

8 Bijan Robinson

The Dirty Bird

Touted as the most elite running back prospect since Saquon Barkley, Bijan Robinson perhaps got off to a bit of a slower start career-wise, but let's be honest – He's not the only recent Falcons player that's happened to either.

Either way, Bijan is finally coming into his own, and he seems every bit as special as advertised when he was drafted. Statistically, he wasn't the best running back in the NFL last year, but no one should be surprised if he tops nearly every rushing metric in the coming season. He's that good, and it would've been nice to see him get the spotlight on the cover of Madden.

7 James Cook

Dalvin Could Never

While Bijan Robinson is probably the most outright talented young RB in the league these days, James Cook was the somewhat surprisingly best back in the NFL last year when it was all said and done in terms of stats and impact. With a receiver core not up to the standards of Josh Allen's MVP-caliber QB play, Cook was the one that stepped up and still made things happen for the Bills.

You can argue that RBs are more easily replaced than other positions, ultimately cheapening their value a bit overall, but I'd argue back that you can't apply this thought process to Cook. The dude is a beast, and he's primed to be incredible in the coming season as well.

6 Drake Maye

Easy Schedule Aside

I'll be totally honest. I'm not personally the biggest Drake Maye believer yet. Yes, the Patriots made the Super Bowl, and New England's regular season success and run through the playoffs were in large part due to Maye's high level of play. He also was the MVP runner-up to someone we'll see later on this list.

Even so, the ease of NE's schedule seemed to finally show itself in the Super Bowl when Seattle took it to them in basically every metric. Regardless, Maye had an amazing year, and one that's pretty easily argued as better than Caleb Williams' overall.

5 Jaxon Smith-Njigba

The Champ

JSN was the league's leader in receiving yards, racking up a staggering 1,793 yards total during the regular season alone. He was also near the top of the NFL in receptions and receiving TDs. All of that by itself would typically be enough to qualify someone for consideration of a Madden cover. Of course, JSN didn't stop there.

He also went on to win a Super Bowl ring, adding an absurd cherry on top of his already ridiculously good season at the WR position. I suppose you could consider Seahawks QB Sam Darnold for the cover as well, but JSN was the most exciting player on the Seattle roster all season (no disrespect towards anyone else intended whatsoever).

4 Ja'Marr Chase

Just Needs a Fully Healthy Burrow

Chase's overall numbers last season might not have been as impressive as some others' outright, but when you factor in that his star QB, Joe Burrow, only played eight games during the year, Chase's "dip" is quite easily explained. In actuality, Ja'Marr Chase was just as incredible as always, he just wasn't always placed in the best positions to rack up the numbers.

He's so good, however, that his presence alone opened up a ton of TD opportunities for WR running mate Tee Higgins, while still managing to get his own regardless. If fully healthy next season once again, and hopefully paired with a healthy Burrow as well, Chase's ceiling moving forward is insanely high.

3 Derrick Henry

Time to Give Flowers

Derrick Henry has never been on the cover of Madden despite being perhaps one of the most consistently incredible running backs in NFL history. No one was quite sure what to make of his potential after moving from his long-standing home in Tennessee to Baltimore alongside Lamar Jackson a couple of seasons ago, but Henry has still been incredible into his 30s with the Ravens.

There simply comes a time when a legendary player deserves to be highlighted on a video game cover, and Derrick Henry is well beyond that point of recognition. Caleb Williams was a fun, young pick, but Henry is the king for a reason.

2 Matthew Stafford

The MVP

Being named the MVP of the entire NFL probably should immediately put you on the shortlist of potential Madden cover athletes. As such, I'd be shocked if EA didn't have Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford somewhere in their top three of contenders. Ultimately, they obviously went a different direction with Williams, but Stafford would've been incredibly deserving too.

Perhaps the downright toughest player in the entire league, Matthew Stafford is the poster child (poster man?) of the NFL in many different ways. Someday, we should expect Stafford will finally start to come back down to Earth since he's now 38 years old, but if last season is any evidence, he's still got plenty left in the tank to be a safe bet for a Madden cover at this point in his career.

1 Myles Garrett

The Best Player in the League

Defensive players aren't chosen as Madden cover athletes very often, but if Myles Garrett wasn't deserving after his last stellar campaign, then I'm not really sure if he's ever going to get the nod. This is a shame, because pound for pound, Garrett is very easily argued as the best player in the entire NFL right now.

Of course, he's had an interesting offseason with the move from the Browns to the Rams, but I kind of see that as all the more reason to put him on the cover of the game. Myles Garrett is going to be playing with something to prove next season, and getting snubbed as the Madden cover athlete for 27 might be just enough fuel added to the fire to turn Myles Garrett into even more of a monster... somehow.