The Pro Bowl is not a serious endeavor. We know that because at the actual Pro Bowl as it’s played now, there isn’t any actual football — it’s more like Field Day in elementary school. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but when it comes to the voting process — 1-3 from the fans, 1/3 from the coaches, and 1/3 from the players — it’s pretty frivolous. There are lifetime achievement awards which have little to do with the present, regionally-stacked oddities, and face-value selections which, again, have nothing to do with present performance.
Still, players get hefty contract incentives from Pro Bowl selections, so you know that players, agents, and teams take this seriously to a point. Now that the rosters for the 2024 Pro Bowl have been announced, here are the weirdest and worst selections.
Tua Tagovailoa over Lamar Jackson.
Tua Tagovailoa is the AFC’s starting quarterback over Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, and while Mahomes has had far from his ideal season, Jackson should absolutely be the starter. Jackson has been a far better runner, a far better deep passer, and he has seven interceptions to Tagovailoa’s 12. Jackson has been exponentially better under pressure, with seven touchdowns and one interception under pressure, compared to Tagovailoa’s two touchdowns and two picks.
Laremy Tunsil, OT, Houston Texans
Tunsil hasn’t played horribly this season, but I would struggle to name him a starting tackle on the AFC team along with Dion Dawkins of the Buffalo Bills. Terron Armstead of the Miami Dolphins, who is not a starter, should be above both of those players. Tunsil has allowed five sacks this season, and while he’s consistent for the most part, there are times when he’ll get overwhelmed by stunts and inside counters.
Joel Bitonio, OG, Cleveland Browns
Bitonio has played well this season, and he was rewarded with one of the two AFC starting guard spots, along with Quenton Nelson of the Indianapolis Colts, who has recovered remarkably from a rough 2022 campaign. But Bitonio has allowed a couple of sacks, and I’d put Kansas City’s Joe Thuney (who is a backup on this year’s roster) slightly ahead of him. This isn’t a huge mistake… just one worth mentioning.
Quinnen Williams over Justin Madubuike.
Maybe it’s because I’m the president of the Justin Madubuike Fan Club based on his tape this year, but having the Baltimore Ravens’ star as an backup behind Quinnen William of the Jets gets a bit up my nose. Yes, Williams has had a great season and deserves to be on the roster, but Madubuike has played at an entirely different level this season with 14 sacks to Williams’ four, and Madubuike makes the grade in all other categories both on tape and in advanced metrics. He should be an AFC starter along with Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs, who is.
Minkah Fitzpatrick over Geno Stone.
My esteemed Touchdown Wire colleague Jarrett Bailey listed Baltimore Ravens safety Geno Stone as one of the biggest Pro Bowl snubs, and I’m here to second that. In a healthy season, there would be no issue with Minkah Fitzpatrick of the Pittsburgh Steelers being a starter along with Justin Simmons of the Denver Broncos, but Fitzpatrick has been limited to just 323 coverage snaps this season. Meanwhile Stone leads all safeties with seven interceptions, and he’s allowed 23 catches on 38 targets for 180 yards, 108 yards after the catch, two touchdowns, and an opponent passer rating of 50.2 for the NFL’s most dangerous defense.
A.J. Brown over Puka Nacua.
A.J. Brown of the Philadelphia Eagles is a great receiver when he’s getting the ball, but that hasn’t happened much lately, Since Week 10, Philly’s best receiver has just 38 catches on 62 targets for 442 yards and one touchdown. Meanwhile, Puka Nacua, who has a backup role on this Pro Bowl team, is shattering all kinds of rookie records, and he’s been a more efficient and explosive target overall. I wouldn’t boot Brown out of the NFC Pro Bowl roster per se, but I would certainly flip his status with Nacua’s.
Zack Martin as a starting NFC guard.
This will probably get me blacklisted forever by Dallas Cowboys fans and members of the offensive line cognoscenti, but this has not been the best season for Zack Martin, who makes his ninth Pro Bowl as a starter. It’s not that Martin has played horribly, but he has allowed four sacks and 25 total pressures this season, and he was particularly befuddled by the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive line in two games this season. I have no issue with Chris Lindstrom of the Atlanta Falcons as the other starter, but I’d probably have Tyler Smith, Martin’s guard bookend, as a starter before I’d put Martin in there.
Budda Baker over Antoine Winfield Jr.
With all due respect to safety Budda Baker of the Arizona Cardinals, putting him in as an NFC starter over Antoine Winfield Jr. of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers makes absolutely no sense at all. Winfield is playing at an All-Pro clip, so snubbing him entirely here in favor of Baker and Julian Love of the Seattle Seahawks is just… odd. This season, Winfield has allowed 26 catches on 37 targets for 312 yards, 130 yards after the catch, one touchdown, three interceptions, seven pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 71.0. And as is required for the best safeties in the game today, Winfield has been a force multiplier at multiple positions from box to free to slot, and even a little defensive line and cornerback. Outside of Kyle Hamilton of the Baltimore Ravens, there isn’t a better safety right now in the NFL.
