Madden Curse Downs Troy Polamlu

I have never been one to believe in superstition hokum, but if on Sunday afternoon Larry Fitzgerald gets hurt when Arizona hosts San Francisco, then I will be a believer in the Madden Curse.

Troy Polamalu, who shares the cover of Madden 10 with Fitzgerald, left last night's Titans/Steelers game with a sprained the medial collateral ligament in his left knee late in the first half of their 13-10 overtime victory against Tennessee on Thursday night. Coach Mike Tomlin said the injury usually sidelines a player from 3 to 6 weeks.

Polamalu was injured when a Titans player fell on him as Steelers defensive end Aaron Smith blocked a 31-yard field goal attempt by Rod Bironas with about three minutes left in the half. Polamalu was attempting to pick up the ball.

Before getting hurt, Polamalu made a one-handed interception and led both teams in tackles with six.

Tomlin said there is a chance the injury could be worse once further tests are run.

Now in regards to the infamous Madden Curse, here is a brief history:

2001: Eddie George. No injury.
2002: Daunte Culpepper. Missed five games and hasn't played to his former potential.
2003: Marshall Faulk. Missed six games. Never ran for 1,000 yards again.
2004: Michael Vick. Broke his leg, missed 11 games, went to prison, went bankrupt.
2005: Ray Lewis. Missed only one game.
2006: Donovan McNabb. Missed last seven games of the season.
2007: Shaun Alexander. Broke his foot, missed six games and was cut by the Seahawks
2008: Vince Young. Missed one game but probably won't be a starting QB in the NFL again.
2009: Brett Favre. Missed no games. But did become an ongoing joke.

Now lets have a look at Polamalu, through the first 96 NFL regular season games of his career, Polamalu has missed a total of eight games. EA puts him on the cover and now he is going to miss another 3-6 games.

Larry Fitzgerald be cautious.