The NFL Pro Bowl Games have begun with dodgeball and various skills competitions replacing the traditional poor facsimile of a professional tackle football game. Now the NFL’s All-Star festivities end Sunday with a flag football game between the league’s two conferences.
While the Pro Bowl has become more of a sham than a showcase of the NFL’s top talent, the football version of an All-Star game offers a lens that underscores just how good the 49ers were in the 2023 season.
San Francisco had a ludicrous number of players either in the games or as alternates. Nine players made the roster, with an additional 12 listed as alternates. Part of the reason they had 21 participants/alternates is due to their long-term success and the pull the 49ers fan base has across the country. Fan voting heavily favored San Francisco and helped some players get into the mix who might not have been there with a different club.
Aside from that though, the best part of the Pro Bowl Games for the 49ers will be that none of their players will be there. Super Bowl participants don’t take part in the games because of preparations for the big game.
San Francisco perfectly threaded the needle. They had a ton of good individual performances this season and put nine players on the NFC’s roster, and then they had the team success in the playoffs to skip the All-Star festivities.
For 49ers fans watching this year, there’s no better sight than George Kittle, Brock Purdy and the rest of their Pro Bowlers not partaking in the end-of-weekend flag football game. They’ll have to wait a week for the next Sunday when they’ll partake in the end-of-season football game instead.
