It's once again that time of the year — the time of the year when the Madden franchise turns to its fans to determine the cover athlete for next year's iteration, this one being Madden NFL 13. Starting two years ago EA Sports changed their cover athlete selection process, maybe in an effort to circumvent the Madden curse or maybe just to get fans involved, and with each subsequent year have made the voting more and more extensive.

This year, for Madden 13, EA is upping the ante once again by featuring two players from all 32 NFL teams as potential candidates for the cover. In the round of 64, fans will have to choose between these fellow teammates to determine which will represent their organization in a tournament style vote much like last year's.

Among the candidates are past Super Bowl MVPs like Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers, along with some notable players on the other side of the ball. If a defensive player were to take the crown, it would be a first for the Madden franchise and maybe another potential curse-breaking scenario.

EA Sports also hedged their bets pretty well by not including some high profile free agents like Peyton Manning and Vincent Jackson, most likely in an effort to avoid the Brett Farve switcheroo that took place a couple of years ago.

Here's your 64-player pool:

Madden 13 Cover Candidates

If this year is about bigger and better, we're all for it.Voting for the versus round began yesterday and continues through the 21st of this month over on the Official Facebook Page, so head on over there to cast your vote.It seems pretty obvious who from a lot of the groups will advance, but perhaps your favorite can mount an upset like Peyton Hillis over Aaron Rodgers last year. Granted, Hillis went on to have an abysmal 2012 season and Aaron Rodgers was MVP, so maybe second place is the spot to put your team's superstar.

There are potentially some big changes on the horizon — some that may or may not be influenced by our suggestions — for Madden 13 starting with an even larger cover athlete vote. If this year is about bigger and better, then we're all for it.

Who do you hope makes it into the 32-player tournament vote? Who is the one player you hope does not make it onto the Madden 13 cover?