Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen is the Madden 24 cover vote winner. These days it's held in-house at EA, and the former Wyoming star held off names such as Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts in order to make the Madden 24 box art. Indeed, we originally had him ranked fifth on our list of likely cover stars, as you can see from the feature below. Allen and the nine contenders he overcame are all profiled in your Madden 24 cover vote guide.
10 Nick Bosa (DE, San Francisco 49ers)
Why do we mention cornerback Richard Sherman, then of the Seattle Seahawks, in this feature every year? Yep: because he was the last defensive player to front this esteemed series, all the way back on Madden 15. Pro football – and videogame Gridiron! – is so offense-oriented these days that it’s hard to see a D-man back on the box, but Bosa offers the best chance. He was the league’s defensive player of the year last season, and looks the part in the iconic Niners’ scarlet-and-gold.
9 Joe Burrow (QB, Cincinnati Bengals)
Let’s face it: the Madden 24 cover star is likely to be a quarterback. It’s almost always a quarterback. McNabb, Favre, Jackson, Brady, Mahomes (more on him later): before his career is out, Bengals signal caller Burrow is highly likely to join that elite list. Trouble is, he fell just short of a second consecutive Super Bowl last year – and the two men who duked it out for last year’s Lombardi trophy are slightly stronger contenders.
8 Christian McCaffrey (RB, San Francisco 49ers)
Incredibly, running backs have an even tougher time landing Madden covers than those on the defensive side of the ball. Adrian Peterson was the last to be granted the honor, back on Madden 25. (That isn’t a typo, by the way – it’s anyone’s guess as to what next year’s game will be called. Madden 25 II?) McCaffrey switched from the Panthers to the 49ers last campaign, and was an immediate smash. In Week 8, against the Rams, he became only the fourth player to record passing, rushing, and receiving touchdowns in the same game.
7 Justin Jefferson (WR, Minnesota Vikings)
Wide receivers have had things a little easier with EA than running backs and defensive players, but it’s still been a while. Antonio Brown, then of Pittsburgh, was their most recent frontman back on Madden 19. Jefferson is one of two strong contenders ahead of Madden 24. In 2022 he won the Offensive Player of the Year award, and became the youngest player to lead the league in receptions (128), and receiving yards (1,809) at just 23 years old.
6 Tyreek Hill (WR, Miami Dolphins)
We could easily have flipped Jefferson with Dolphins speedster Hill in this spot. Both are in contention should EA decide to front the series with a receiver. Tyreek’s just been doing it that little while longer, shredding defenses in Kansas City, then immediately slotting into a roasting hot Miami offense. Hill finished the year with career highs in receptions (119) and receiving yards (1,710) as the Phins scored a shock play-off spot.
WINNER! 5 Josh Allen (QB, Buffalo Bills)
Not even Tyreek Hill’s deep-ball abilities were enough to earn Miami an underdog play-off win in Buffalo. Instead, Bills QB Allen triumphed on the day, earning revenge for a head-turning early season defeat in South Florida. Like Joe Burrow, he’ll make this list for a few years to come – but again is likely to be usurped on the box by one of the two Super Bowl signal-callers. [June 8 update: we were wrong, and Allen is indeed this year's cover star.]
4 Patrick Mahomes (QB, Kansas City Chiefs)
Another Super Bowl win, another MVP award… another Madden cover? It’s certainly a possibility where perfect Pat is concerned. He fronted both Madden 21 and 22, before the death of John Madden led to EA putting the great man himself on the box in tribute. Mahomes shared his last cover with now-retired QB icon Tom Brady, but has two or three solo ones left in him yet. Don’t be surprised if Madden 24 is one of them.
3 Jason Kelce (C, Philadelphia Eagles) & 2 Travis Kelce (TE, Kansas City Chiefs)
If EA were ever planning to have two brothers on the cover, this is its lightning-in-a-bottle opportunity. The two Kelces faced off in this year’s Super Bowl, with tight end Travis’ Chiefs eventually ousting center Jason’s Eagles. It’s a very tempting cover combo. So much so that the pair won a Reddit fan vote on the matter earlier this year. Making it even cooler: no offensive lineman has ever graced the box. Go on, Jase.
1 Jalen Hurts (QB, Philadelphia Eagles)
The Philadelphia Eagles have only ever graced the Madden packaging once: with elite quarterback Donovan McNabb, back on Madden NFL 06. This year represents their best shot at changing that statistic. His team might have fallen short – just! – at Super Bowl 57, but Hurts was incredible across both regular season and play-offs. He went 14-1 ahead of the team’s play-off run, with 35 total touchdowns (22 passing, 13 rushing), 3,701 passing yards, and a 101.5 quarterback rating. If there’s to be a new face fronting the series this year, there’s simply no one more deserving.
