Pitt Legend Named Candidate For Madden Cover

A former Pitt Panthers legend, who will certainly make the Hall of Fame in a few years time, is a candidate to grace the Madden 25 cover.

Dec 10, 2023; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald (99) before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports / Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- EA Sports announced that they'll reveal the Madden 25 Cover next Tuesday, June 11 and one Pitt Panthers legend has a shot to make it.

Bobby Kownack at NFL.com gave some names he thinks might grace the cover and Aaron Donald came up as one of them.

Titling his prediction as, "A tip of the cap to a future Hall of Famer?" Kownack said that putting one of the best ever defensive tackles in history on the Madden cover would make a great deal of sense and would celebrate the end of a great career.

"How can we continue to celebrate the greatest interior defensive lineman of a generation following his retirement?" Kownack asked. "How does a sports game communicate with one image that it's the best of the best? The answer to both those questions is putting the game-wrecking Donald on the cover in commemoration of his magnificent career. A three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Donald never missed a Pro Bowl during his 10 seasons in the NFL and eight times received first-team All-Pro honors. His 111 career sacks stand second all time among primary defensive tackles, behind only John Randle's 137.5. The accolades feel endless. The superlatives to describe him, not nearly enough. Considering Donald was participating in his rookie training camp the last time a defender made the cover (Richard Sherman in the summer of 2014), it'd be kismet to bookend his decade of dominance by ending the drought with him."

Kownack also had him in a group of players that might earn the Madden cover. This includes reigning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in Houston Texas quarterback C.J. Stroud, reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year in San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey, 2022 NFL Offensive Player of the Year in Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson and eight-time All-Pro in Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker.

If Donald does get the Madden cover, he would serve as just the second Pitt alum to do so, as Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald did so for Madden 10, alongside Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu.

Donald, an alum of Penn Hills, played for Pitt from 2010-13 and starred in 2013, making 59 tackles (43 solo), 28.5 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, four forced fumbles and three passes defended.

This earned him ACC Defensive Player of the Year and unanimous All-American honors. He also secured the Chuck Bednarik Award and Bronco Nagurski Trophy for best defensive player, the Outland Trophy for best interior lineman and the Lombardi Award for the player who embodies the spirit of Hall of Fame head coach Vince Lombardi.

Donald also had an excellent NFL career with the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, making the Pro Bowl all 10 seasons he played in, three NFL Defensive Player of the Year Awards and is a member of the NFL All-2010s Decade Team.

He finished his NFL career with 150 starts in 154 games he played in over 10 seasons from 2014-23, 543 tackles (340 solo), 176 tackles for loss, 260 quarterback hits, 111.0 sacks, 24 forced fumbles, seven fumble recoveries and 21 passes defended.

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