The NFL is eliminating the Pro Bowl and replacing it with weeklong skills competitions and a flag football game, according to Rob Maaddi of the Associated Press. The new event will be named The Pro Bowl Games.
The first such event will be held on Feb. 5, 2023, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning’s company, Omaha Productions, will be responsible for programming and promote the event the week leading up to it. Manning also will serve as coach for one of the flag football teams.
“The Pro Bowl is something that we’ve been looking at for a while, really continuing to evolve,” NFL executive Peter O’Reilly told The Associated Press. “Coming out of last year’s game, we really made the decision based on a lot of internal conversations, getting feedback from GMs and coaches, getting a lot of feedback from players. We think there’s a real opportunity to do something wholly different here and move away from the traditional tackle football game.”
The Pro Bowl has been heavily criticized in the past. Players seemingly often put in limited effort in order to avoid injury, making the spectacle difficult to watch at times. The Pro Bowl debuted in January 1951, and for the first time in over 70 years, the NFL will go in another direction with a postseason event for its biggest stars.
