The Miami Hurricanes finally got a video game cover athlete when Malachi Toney appeared front and center for College Football 27. Unfortunately, the NFL team in South Florida is still waiting for their moment in that particular spotlight.
On June 3, Caleb Williams became the latest star to grace the cover of EA Sports’ famous Madden franchise. The young gunslinger was seventh in the league last season with 3,942 passing yards and sixth with 27 touchdowns in leading the Chicago Bears to an 11-6 record and their first playoff win in 15 years. For that, the former No. 1 overall pick was picked for the Madden NFL 27 cover.
That also makes him the first Bear ever to appear on the cover of the prestigious football game. EA Sports started putting players on the cover of its game (instead of its namesake, Hall of Fame coach and broadcaster John Madden) in 2000, when Tennessee Titans running back Eddie George appeared on Madden NFL 2001.
The Bears became the 21st team to have a player featured on the Madden cover. That list does not include the Miami Dolphins, who like the Bears (until last year) have suffered through a lengthy drought without a playoff win. Longer, in fact: The two-time Super Bowl champions haven’t won a postseason game since 2000, the same season George broke into video game history.
Appearing on the cover is a big deal, as many of today’s stars grew up playing the Madden games while also honing their craft on the field. Several Dolphins have certainly been deserving of the honor, from Jason Taylor to Tyreek Hill. But Miami’s lack of success isn’t all to blame for why they haven’t placed a player on the cover. The Cleveland Browns, owners of the worst two-year stretch in NFL history, saw running back Peyton Hillis win the fan vote for the 2011 version. The traditional uninspiring Titans have had two cover athletes, with quarterback Vince Young joining George in 2007.
Heck, even the moribund New York Jets have landed on the cover … well, sort of. In 2008, Brett Favre was voted by fans to be the cover athlete after what was supposed to be his final season with the Green Bay Packers. But then Favre was traded to the Jets before the season, so EA Sports made printable versions of the Madden 09 cover with Favre in a Jets jersey.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are the only Florida team to land a cover athlete when Tom Brady joined Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes on the cover in 2021, the season after the two duked it out in the Super Bowl. Both QBs marked their second appearance on the cover that year.
With the Dolphins jettisoning several key players from last year’s team, expectations are low coming into this season. That doesn’t mean the next Madden cover athlete isn’t on the roster though, as electric running back De’Von Achane finished fifth with 1,350 rushing yards with 12 total touchdowns in 2025. And who knows, maybe new quarterback Malik Willis will be the one to lead Miami back to its Dan Marino days.
Madden cover athletes
NFL teams that haven’t been on Madden cover
The Dolphins have not had a player on a Madden cover yet. The Jaguars technically haven’t either, though a generic Jaguars player did appear alongside a generic Panthers player on the cover of Madden 96 for both teams’ inaugural seasons. The Jags were also kind of on the Madden 26 cover, as Saquon Barkley recreated his iconic backwards hurdle over a Jacksonville player (though a generic black helmet was used on the cover art).
Here’s the complete list of 11 teams yet to put a player on a Madden cover:
Madden 27 release date
Madden NFL 27 will be available for all audiences Thursday, Aug. 13, with a 10-hour early-access trial available starting Aug. 6. The game will be available to play on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, Steam, the EA app on Windows and via Epic Games.
Contributing: Jacob Camenker, USA TODAY; Ashley Ferrer, USA TODAY Network – Florida
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: With Caleb Williams on Madden 27 cover, Dolphins stay on shrinking list
Reporting by Dan Rorabaugh, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dan Rorabaugh, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida | USA TODAY Network
