If you were a football fan in the mid-2000s, Shaun Alexander wasn't just a player; he was a force of nature. He was coming off a 2005 season that felt like a video game come to life. 1,880 rushing yards. A then-record 28 total touchdowns. An MVP trophy sitting on his mantle. Naturally, Electronic Arts (EA) came calling. They put him on the Shaun Alexander Madden cover for the 2007 edition of the game.
It seemed like the ultimate crowning achievement. Honestly, back then, being the Madden cover athlete was the closest thing a player had to a coronation.
Then everything broke. Literally.
The Night the Curse Became Real
People love to talk about the "Madden Curse" like it's some mystical hex, but for Shaun Alexander, the timing was almost cruel. He hadn't missed a start in 64 consecutive games before he appeared on that box. He was the definition of "reliable."
Then came Week 3 of the 2006 season against the New York Giants.
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Alexander cracked the fourth metatarsal in his left foot. It wasn't just a "tweak" or a bruise. It was a season-altering injury that sidelined the reigning MVP for six games. When he finally returned, he looked... different. He wasn't hitting the holes with that same violent burst. He finished the season with 896 yards—his first time under the 1,000-yard mark since the turn of the millennium.
Was it a curse? Or was it just the physics of a running back who had touched the ball 370 times the year before?
More Than Just a Video Game Jinx
While everyone was busy blaming the Shaun Alexander Madden cover, the Seahawks were dealing with a massive internal disaster. They lost Steve Hutchinson.
See, Alexander didn't just run over people on his own. He ran behind one of the greatest left sides in the history of the NFL: Walter Jones and Steve Hutchinson. In the 2006 offseason, the Minnesota Vikings pulled a "poison pill" contract move that effectively stole Hutchinson away from Seattle.
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The impact was immediate:
- Alexander’s yards per carry plummeted.
- The "unstoppable" left-side run lanes vanished.
- Defenses no longer feared the Seattle ground game.
Alexander was already 29 when the game hit shelves. In "running back years," that's basically middle-aged. You take a high-volume back, remove his Hall of Fame guard, add a broken foot, and you have a recipe for a steep decline. The Madden cover was just the visual marker for when the cliff arrived.
What Most People Get Wrong About 2007
There’s a common misconception that Alexander just "stopped being good" because he got paid or got lazy. That’s just not true.
Even in 2007, while dealing with a broken wrist and a sprained knee, he was out there trying to grind. But the burst was gone. He averaged a career-low 3.5 yards per carry that season. The Seattle faithful, once obsessed with him, started to boo. It was a harsh fall for a guy who had literally been the face of the league twelve months prior.
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By 2008, he was playing a bit-part role for the Washington Redskins. Then, just like that, he was gone from the league.
The Legacy of the Madden 07 Cover
Looking back, the Shaun Alexander Madden cover remains one of the most cited examples of the "curse" because the statistical drop-off was so vertical. He went from 27 rushing touchdowns in 2005 to just 7 in 2006.
It changed how players looked at the cover. While Alexander famously said he didn't believe in curses—"I'm the person that goes against the grain," he told reporters—other stars started to get a little nervous when EA called.
What You Can Learn From the Alexander Era
If you're looking at this from a sports history or even a fantasy football perspective, there are a few hard truths to take away:
- The 370-Carry Rule: History shows that RBs who eclipse 370 carries in a season almost always break down the following year. Alexander had exactly 370 in his MVP year.
- Infrastructure Matters: A running back is only as good as the five guys in front of him. When the Seahawks lost Hutchinson, Alexander’s "Madden-level" stats were doomed regardless of any curse.
- The Age Cliff: Running backs rarely recover from major foot injuries once they hit age 29 or 30.
Moving Forward
To truly understand the impact of this era, you should go back and watch highlights of the 2005 Seahawks. It puts into perspective how massive the decline was. If you're researching the "Madden Curse" for a project or just a bar argument, don't stop at the injury. Look at the roster turnover in Seattle that year. It provides a much more logical—though less spooky—explanation for why one of the greatest peaks in NFL history ended so abruptly.
Check out the Pro Football Reference splits for Alexander between 2005 and 2006 to see the exact moment the efficiency died. It’s a sobering look at how fast the window closes in professional sports.