Headlines

The Madden NFL 17 cover athlete will be revealed Thursday, May 12 during the 6 PM ET SportsCenter broadcast on ESPN. Presumably following this reveal, the first M17 gameplay trailer will also be released.

Two of the most rumored (& likely) potential cover athletes center around Panthers QB Cam Newtown and Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski.

Who do you want to see on the cover of Madden NFL 17? What are you hoping to see in the gameplay reveal? Share your thoughts with the community in the comments below. ...

Now available is a new way to play Madden Ultimate Team: MUT Salary Cap. Salary Cap sees users establish a 34-man roster from Player Items in their Item Binder. Each item will have a Cap Value listed on the front of the card and each roster must not exceed 1,000 point in Cap Total.

While most active MUT users now eight months following release will have a loaded roster to aid in forming their roster, welcome and starter packs will include more Gold Players to help newcomers. Establishing a roster will be as important as on-field strategy. Users must decide if they will have a balanced roster or go star-heavy in spots knowing it will cost them in other areas/depth.

Continue on to read additional details on MUT Salary Cap straight from producer Jake Stein. ...

Along with the NHL 17 cover vote, EA SPORTS has released a video detailing the developer's "vision" for this year's hockey title.

Legacy and establish your own unique legacy is the top theme emanating from the video. Among the new features briefly discussed or revealed in the clip are franchise relocation and the World Cup of Hockey. During the video narration, NHL 17 is being called by EA SPORTS as their "biggest and most exciting hockey game to date."

Continue on to see the NHL 17 'Vision' trailer, screenshots from the video, and then share your thoughts with the community. ...

The NHL 17 cover athlete is currently underway and will be determined by fan vote. Eight players will vie for the cover, each representing one of the eight teams competing in the World Cup of Hockey - one of the new features announced for NHL 17.

The eight players include Connor McDavid (NYR), Jamie Benn (DAL), Aleksander Barkov (FLA), Victor Hedman (TB), Joe Pavelski (SJ), Anze Kopitar (LAK), Vladimir Tarasenko (STL), and Jakub Voracek (PHI).

The winner will be announced June 22 at the 2016 NHL Awards in Las Vegas. Continue on to read the press release from EA SPORTS on the voting process.

In the comments below, share with the community who you hope to see become the NHL 17 cover athlete. ...

A new regular season roster update is now available for NBA LIVE 16.

Steph Curry enters the playoffs with a 97 OVR and as the top player in the game. Rounding out the top five are Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, and Chris Paul.

The update includes over 40 gear updates in addition to ratings and roster movement.

Continue on to read the official blog from EA SPORTS. ...

Coinciding with the retirement of former cover athlete Kobe Bryant, NBA 2K17 will offer a special Legend Edition honoring the five-time World Champion and 18-time All-Star.

Retailing for $79.99, the Legend Edition contains a mixture of physical and digital items. The physical items include a limited-edition Kobe poster, a Black Mamba controller skin, and two Panini Kobe trading cards. In-game items include 30,000 Virtual Currency, a MtYEAM pack bundle, MyPLAYER gear, and more to be announced.

No game information was revealed with this announcement, except that the game will be released in September. ...

Game update 1.02 is now available for the PlayStation 4 version of MLB The Show 16. This update fixes several game freezes and addresses the dreaded 'Challenge failed' issue.

The development team continues to work on improving the online experience behind the scenes and acknowledges the recent struggles users have been facing. To reward the patience of fans, all users who have played MLB 16 prior to Friday, April 8 will receive 5,000 stubs and 10 standard packs for use in Diamond Dynasty.

Continue on to read patch notes and a statement from the MLB The Show 16 development team. ...

In an interview with SI Now's Maggie Gray, Big East Commmissioner Val Ackerman stated that she believes the NCAA is currently reconsidering their stance on not allowing student athletes to sign endorsement deals.

Courtesy SI.com: Under the current rules, student athletes may not be paid for the use of their image or likeness or they would forfeit their amateur status and their collegiate eligibility could be affected. When Gray asked Ackerman why students shouldn’t be able to capitalize on the value they bring to their university, Ackerman responded that the NCAA is considering changing that rule.

“That’s one that’s actually under consideration I believe by the NCAA,” Ackerman said. “It’s actually a time right now where student athlete interests are being closely examined. I don’t have an answer for you on that one today but I will say that and a number of other topics are under review, and I think rightly by the NCAA and it’s very possible that over the course of the next year or two as these these ideas work their way through the legislative system you could see changes.”

On-going legislation includes the plaintiffs in the O'Bannon case petitioning the Supreme Court to hear their case and also the Kessler antitrust lawsuit versus the NCAA. ...

EA SPORTS UFC 2 is currently holding a contest where the best Created Fighters made by the community can earn them some great prizes.

Created fighters must be submitted by Tuesday, April 12. The first round of voting runs through April 18 and the final five will be voted on until a winner is decided on April 25.

Continue on to see the full rules and contest info and also a look at some created fighters made by the community, including The Undertaker, Spiderman, and Manny Pacquiao. ...