Breaking: No more AFC vs NFC Pro Bowl

[sb1]

Apparently It's now going to be teams created by "fantasy draft" format like how the NHL is doing it.

Don't know how I feel about no kickoffs but other than that...nice!





Adam Schefter‏@AdamSchefter23m
No more kickoffs in Pro Bowl. Rosters will consist of 43 players per squad. Game will be played Jan 26 in Honolulu.


Adam Schefter‏@AdamSchefter25m
Now players will be assigned to teams through the Pro Bowl Draft (really). Jerry Rice and Deion Sanders will be draft captains.


Adam Schefter‏@AdamSchefter27m
NFL eliminated traditional AFC-NFC Pro Bowl matchup; will be replaced with Pro-Bowl fantasy-like draft, per ESPN sources.

 

[brdmaverick]

Will the players selected be made up of equal AFC and NFC players, and THEN the fantasy draft happens.........

OR could potentially all six QBs be from the AFC (or NFC)?

 

[Uncle Rico]

NFL Communications - 2014 Pro Bowl, Presented by McDonald?s, Features New Format for NFL All-Star Game «

Answering my first question:

players will be selected without regard to conference in voting by fans, coaches and players. For example, the top six quarterbacks following voting will earn distinction as All-Stars, regardless of how many are from AFC or NFC teams.

 

[sb1]

It should be fun to see how this works. Will it improve the quality of players in the game and will it make players less inclined to skip it? Is the "draft" before the SB participants are decided?

I like it.

 

[eternal]

Not that I needed another reason to not watch the pro bowl, but I guess this is it.

 

[Claremonster]

They should have a skills competition...then I would be interested.

 

[DarrylS]

I still do not see it... suspect a lot of players will opt out.

Maybe the best thing they could do is some type of skills competition... strength, speed, accuracy and other football type activities...

 

[sb1]

I still do not see it... suspect a lot of players will opt out.

Maybe the best thing they could do is some type of skills competition... strength, speed, accuracy and other football type activities...

Wasn't there a skills competition years ago? Not at the pro bowl but sometime in the offseason? I thought I remembered Brady winning some passing competition....

 

[jmt57]

With Pro Bowl rosters being determined completely by fan voting, the award will become even less meaningful than it already is. I didn't think that was possible.


As for the game itself, they should just do away with it since the players are going half-speed in an attempt to avoid injury. Replace it with a flag football game and some skills competitions: for example, a mixture of what is done at the combine (e.g., three-cone drill, vertical jump) and other 'fun' events (e.g., tug of war, best ball golf).

 

[Claremonster]

Wasn't there a skills competition years ago? Not at the pro bowl but sometime in the offseason? I thought I remembered Brady winning some passing competition....

Sandlot flag football causes a lot of injuries...especially to running backs.

 

[sb1]

With Pro Bowl rosters being determined completely by fan voting, the award will become even less meaningful than it already is. I didn't think that was possible.

I think it's still players, coaches and fans?

 

[Claremonster]

With Pro Bowl rosters being determined completely by fan voting, the award will become even less meaningful than it already is. I didn't think that was possible.


As for the game itself, they should just do away with it since the players are going half-speed in an attempt to avoid injury. Replace it with a flag football game and some skills competitions: for example, a mixture of what is done at the combine (e.g., three-cone drill, vertical jump) and other 'fun' events (e.g., tug of war, best ball golf).

ala 3 point contest or homerun derby. Something like that...

 

[sb1]

Sandlot flag football causes a lot of injuries...especially to running backs.

indeed.

 

[jmt57]

I think it's still players, coaches and fans?

Oops, you are correct; thanks for the correction.

:brick:

 

[Termigator]

I don't see how this is going to make the game better. I'm putting my money on another "pat-a-cake pat-a-cake" performance this year. It's a free trip to Hawaii and outside of running around in a pretty green cow pasture for a few hours it's all fruity drinks with umbrellas in them and a day at the beach. I think I'll head to the beach myself that weekend.

 

[jah]

Not sure how I feel about not doing it by conference anymore, don't really care about the new game rules except that they removed special teams from the game. Special teams are just as important as anything else.

EDIT: I misread the release, thought Rice and Sanders would be the only people who had any say in who makes the Pro Bowl...

 

[sb1]

Oops, you are correct; thanks for the correction.

:brick:

I would hope that it still is anyway....

 

[TruthSeeker]

Apparently It's now going to be teams created by "fantasy draft" format like how the NHL is doing it.

Don't know how I feel about no kickoffs but other than that...nice!





Adam Schefter‏@AdamSchefter23m
No more kickoffs in Pro Bowl. Rosters will consist of 43 players per squad. Game will be played Jan 26 in Honolulu.


Adam Schefter‏@AdamSchefter25m
Now players will be assigned to teams through the Pro Bowl Draft (really). Jerry Rice and Deion Sanders will be draft captains.


Adam Schefter‏@AdamSchefter27m
NFL eliminated traditional AFC-NFC Pro Bowl matchup; will be replaced with Pro-Bowl fantasy-like draft, per ESPN sources.

Not that I care about the Pro-Bowl, but I absolutely HATE the way the NHL does their Allstar game, so this will give me another reason to not watch the Pro Bowl.

 

[sb1]

Not sure how I feel about not doing it by conference anymore, don't really care about the new game rules, but it's so ridiculously stupid that only two guys, one of them being Deion Sanders, get to choose the rosters.

True, at least in the NHL version of this draft you have active players making the choices.

I think Brady and Peyton should be captains making picks for their own teams.

 

[Salva135]

True, at least in the NHL version of this draft you have active players making the choices.

I think Brady and Peyton should be captains making picks for their own teams.

If this is accurate, then it's not just Deion and Rice making the picks:

Players will be assigned to teams through the Pro Bowl Draft, in which two leading vote getters will join two NFL.com fantasy football champions – who will attend the Pro Bowl – to draft players.

The fantasy football champions will have Hall of Fame help. Pro Football Hall of Famers JERRY RICE and DEION SANDERS will serve as alumni team captains, assisting the Pro Bowl team captains and fantasy football champions in the draft process.

I guess it's kind of cool that fans will be involved. Pretty good way to troll some players you hate!