First Look: Madden NFL 2005

EA Sports recently kicked off the first promotion to help hype Madden NFL 2005, the latest installment in the blockbuster football-sim series. Between now and April 23, contestants can enter "Draft Pick' Em Sweeps" by going to the official EA Sports site and predicting the first 10 players drafted.

Entrants with the most correct predictions will be entered into a random drawing for an autographed football or one of 10 copies of Madden NFL 2005 for the PlayStation 2. The Web site will post the results of the real-life NFL Draft on Saturday, April 24, with contest winners to be announced later.

While the contest itself might excite some already looking forward to the draft, gamers will be riled up by what EA Sports released along with it--the first screenshots of Madden NFL 2005. The four shots show Houston linebacker Charlie Clemons being pushed down by Atlanta offensive tackle Bob Whitfield, the New York Jets' Curtis Martin catching a pass between two New York Giants, the New England Patriots' Rodney Harrison leaving a Baltimore Raven in the dust, and Dallas linebacker Dat Nguyen tackling Brian Mitchell, formerly of the New York Giants.

GameSpot will have more information on Madden NFL 2005 as its August 17 kick-off nears.