Brady thrilled to appear on ‘Madden’ cover

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, three months after winning his fifth Super Bowl ring, has been selected to be the cover boy of “Madden NFL 18.”

Brady, who will turn 40 in August, becomes oldest player to appear on the cover of the popular EA Sports football video game.

“When this all came about,” Brady told ESPN, “I thought, ‘How cool is that to do this, knowing when I was a kid in high school I was tagging along down there, working out where it all started?’ It’s been such a great game over a long period of time. I played it so much when I was younger, a little less now... My son Jack loves beating up on me.”

EA Sports announced Friday that Brady follows teammate Rob Gronkowski, who was on the cover of last year’s edition. It marks the first time in Madden’s 29-year history that teammates have been on the cover in back-to-back years.

Gronkowski missed the postseason last year after landing on injured reserve -- adding credence to the notion of the so-called “Madden Curse” that started in 1999, when the first player to appear on the cover, San Francisco 49ers running back Garrison Hearst, broke his ankle in a playoff loss to Atlanta, and has continued throughout the years.

“I don’t think Gronk’s ever been cursed by anything,” Brady countered. “He’s in pretty good shape.”

But Brady acknowledged that in accepting the EA honor, he might have added an opponent to the 2017 schedule.

“I suppose there’s been some reality to that curse over the years,” Brady conceded. “Hopefully I can break it. That would be pretty cool.”

Meanwhile, the Houston Texans signed first-round pick Deshaun Watson to a four-year contract and the quarterback was available for the start of rookie minicamp.

As with all first-round selections, the contract comes with a team option for a fifth season. The deal is worth $13.8 million