Just when you thought that you did haven’t anything to do with the NFL that you could bet on… The 2013 Madden Cover Contest is on and here at Bankroll Sports, we are handicapping the 2013 Madden Cover contest and trying to figure out which player will be on the cover of the Madden NFL 2013 game! All Madden cover odds courtesy of Bovada Sportsbook!

The top dog for this year’s Madden cover is none other than the Carolina Panthers’ QB Cam Newton (2013 Madden Cover Odds: 5 to 2 @ Bovada Sportsbook). Newton clearly had the best year that a rookie has ever had, and he is one of these figures that is hard to hate at this point. He does it all, and there really isn’t a player that he can run into on the bracket that could possibly upset him until perhaps the third round against someone like a LeSean McCoy or Larry Fitzgerald. Even then, it just doesn’t seem likely. Don’t be shocked if Newton makes it all the way, as he is clearly one of the more popular players and is deserving of being on the Madden cover, even if he is just in his second year.

It’s not all that often that we talk about the prospects of a tight end being on the Madden cover, but there is no doubt that Rob Gronkowski (Odds To Be On Madden Cover: 6 to 1 @ Bovada Sportsbook) is going to be a man that takes deep run into this tournament. Gronk is another one of these figures that really came out on nowhere to be a force this year, and he is in a bracket that just isn’t all that hard when push comes to shove. There shouldn’t be a player challenge him until Round 3, where the likes of Arian Foster or Calvin Johnson could be waiting. Remember that Gronk also has the Boston market on his side, and though playing with the New England Patriots does turn off a ton of fans, it also helps get the support of his own huge market.

List Of All Madden Covers Players
Note: Before 1999, John Madden was on the cover
2013 Madden Cover – ???
2012 Madden Cover – Peyton Hillis (Cleveland Browns)
2011 Madden Cover – Drew Brees (New Orleans Saints)
2010 Madden Cover – Larry Fitzgerald (Arizona Cardinals) and Troy Polamalu (Pittsburgh Steelers)
2009 Madden Cover – Brett Favre (Green Bay Packers)
2008 Madden Cover – Vince Young (Tennessee Titans)
2007 Madden Cover – Shaun Alexander (Seattle Seahawks)
2006 Madden Cover – Donovan McNabb (Philadelphia Eagles)
2005 Madden Cover – Ray Lewis (Baltimore Ravens)
2004 Madden Cover – Michael Vick (Atlanta Falcons)
2003 Madden Cover – Marshall Faulk (St. Louis Rams)
2002 Madden Cover – Daunte Culpepper (Minnesota Vikings)
2001 Madden Cover – Eddie George (Tennessee Titans)
2000 Madden Cover – Barry Sanders (Detroit Lions) and Dorsey Levens (Green Bay Packers)
1999 Madden Cover – Garrison Hearst (San Francisco 49ers)

At the top of that bracket though, is the quarterback that we think can get the job done. Aaron Rodgers (Odds To Be On Madden 13 Cover: 5 to 1 @ Bovada Sportsbook) of the Green Bay Packers won the league’s MVP award last year, and he probably would have been a virtual lock to be on the Madden Cover had he led his team to a second straight Super Bowl title. He has absolutely no one in his draw that should be a threat to his crown until perhaps running into Drew Brees in the third round, but even then, with all of the negativity that is floating around in the Bayou right now, we just don’t think that Brees is going to be the one that gets the job done.

Every now and again in a contest like this one, you see some screwy results. The fans of the Oakland Raiders are crazy, and Florida State Seminoles football fans flock all around the country. There aren’t many that would say anything bad whatsoever about one of their fan favorites Sebastian Janikowski (Madden NFL 13 Cover Odds: 100 to 2 @ Bovada Sportsbook). Okay, sure. We get it. Janikowski is a kicker. That being said, he is going against Maurice Jones-Drew in the first round of this tournament, a man that probably has no business being a No. 3 seed in this bracket, and neither Matt Forte nor Patrick Willis really seem like that much of a threat either. Janikowski has made all sorts of history in the past with some of his outrageous field goal attempts, and now, he can make even more history if he can become the first kicker or punter to be on the cover of a Madden game.

Full List of 2013 Madden Cover Odds @ Bovada Sportsbook (as of 3/24/12):
(Get a HUGE 20% Bonus at Bovada.lv When Using This Link)
Cam Newton 5 to 2
Aaron Rodgers 5 to 1
Rob Gronkowski 6 to 1
Victor Cruz 10 to 1
Arian Foster 12 to 1
Calvin Johnson 12 to 1
Maurice Jones-Drew 12 to 1
Drew Brees 15 to 1
Larry Fitzgerald 15 to 1
LeSean McCoy 15 to 1
Matt Forte 15 to 1
Ray Rice 15 to 1
Tim Tebow 15 to 1
Darrelle Revis 25 to 1
Jared Allen 25 to 1
Antonio Gates 35 to 1
Marshawn Lynch 35 to 1
Chris Johnson 50 to 1
DeMarcus Ware 50 to 1
Dwight Freeney 50 to 1
Stevie Johnson 50 to 1
Dwayne Bowe 60 to 1
Patrick Willis 60 to 1
AJ Green 70 to 1
Reggie Bush 70 to 1
Brandon Lloyd 80 to 1
Matt Ryan 80 to 1
Troy Polamalu 80 to 1
Brian Orakpo 100 to 1
Sebastian Janikowski 100 to 1
LeGarrette Blount 125 to 1
Joe Haden 150 to 1