Peyton Hillis to be on the Cover of Madden 2012

By Justin Worsley,

Thirteen months ago, an unknown Peyton Hillis was traded from the Denver Broncos to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for quarterback Brady Quinn.

Quinn went on to be the Broncos third-string quarterback while Hillis went on to take the NFL by storm.

After a breakout season in which Hillis rushed for 1,177 yards and 13 total touchdowns, Hillis has been named the cover-boy for EA Sports videogame Madden 12.

Fans voted for the next person to grace the cover on ESPN.com. All 32 NFL teams had a player on their team whom people could vote on, except for the Seattle Seahawks, who were represented by their fans, known as "The 12th Man."

Hillis defeated Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick, who was on the cover of Madden 2004, in the final round. Hillis won by a landslide 66-percent of the votes. Over 13 million people voted in the poll, including one million people in the final round.

Hillis, the 10th seed in the bracket, ousted Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers along with Vick on his road to victory.

The Cleveland Browns, who finished 6-10 last season, will become the first team to have a losing record and manage to have a player grace the cover of a Madden videogame. Hillis will become the first running back to be on the cover of the game since Shaun Alexander in Madden 07.