Steelers to win Super Bowl XLIII, predicts Madden game

Cancel your keg and put away the foam fingers -- we already know which team will win Super Bowl XLIII.

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Or at least we do if we believe EA Sports, who have just released the results of their annual Super Bowl prediction as determined by a simulated game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Arizona Cardinals in Madden NFL '09. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the odds-on favorites from Pennsylvania held off the upstart Cardinals, 28-24.

But is this all really just fun and games? A quick look back at the recent history of Madden's prognostication reveals some pretty impressive numbers:

2008
Madden: Patriots over Giants, 38-30
Reality: Giants over Patriots, 17-14

2007
Madden: Colts over Bears, 38-27
Reality: Colts over Bears, 29-17

2006
Madden: Steelers over Seahawks, 24-19
Reality: Steelers over Seahawks, 21-10

2005
Madden: Patriots over Eagles, 47-31
Reality: Patriots over Eagles, 24-21

2004
Madden: Patriots over Panthers 23-20
Reality: Patriots over Panthers, 32-29

So other than fumbling last year's Super Bowl by errantly picking the Patriots over the Giants (a mistake made by pretty much everyone who doesn't live in or around the Five Boroughs), the football sim has been eerily on target. And in 2006, it was just a field goal or three away from actually nailing the score. Might be time to call your bookie...

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