Boom! John Madden Retires

John Madden is pretty much synonymous with football. Whether its through coaching, commentating or helping to create probably one of the best sports video games ever made, the Monday Night/Sunday Night football analyst is known for his love of the sport he so heavily influenced. As he decides to end his career in commentating, we are left with a void to fill on regular season nights.

The man had a knack for making an average play sound like the most exciting thing that had happened on television. With his signature "boom!" or "bang!", he would draw the x's and the o's right on the screen to make you feel like you were part of a team with him; dissecting the play. He leaves the game better than he found it. Having won a Super Bowl as head coach for the Raiders and an impressive 14 Sports Emmy Awards as a commentator, Madden's mark on the game is permanent for every young football fan to appreciate in the future.

His quirkiness was bold and was also part of his appeal. Only Madden could ride a custom, luxury bus around the country (refusing to fly) from game to game and make it seem like a normal occurrence. His Thanksgiving Day game prize to the winning team was a Turducken; a hybrid bird of turkey, duck, and chicken. His so-called "Maddenisms" are legendary and copied by comedians and fans alike. Stating the obvious to his fans as if it would have never occurred to them, was more of a gift than a flaw.

The video game is where John Madden proved himself to be ageless. Madden NFL Football published by Electronic Arts, is one of the most popular video games to date. It is so popular, that NFL players continue to clamour for the cover of the updated version each year. There has been theory of a "Madden curse" which predicts that the player on the cover will be doomed to be injured in the following season. Although, some players have been injured after being featured on the cover, the curse is believed to be just a coincidental superstition.

We the fan will miss John Madden's voice and presence in the booth every week during the season. We will miss the "boom!", we will miss the turducken, and we will miss all of the "Maddenisms" that filled our evening games. But, I have a feeling that John Madden could never really leave the NFL or the game of football. The game is forever in him and he will forever be in the game.