This morning during the Mike and Mike ESPN radio show, NFL Insider Chris Mortensen suggested that the NFL might be moving towards the elimination of the Pro Bowl. I say, ‘Good Riddance’. The Pro Bowl is the one All-Star game which is absolutely dreadful. I’ll admit, I never watch the game. I don’t think I’ve watched more than 10 minutes of the game in each of the last 15 years.
The game is a joke. Players, past their prime get voted on to the roster. Players which played the week before in the Super Bowl do not participate. Some players don’t bother to show up after being voted on to the team. The rosters become further watered down by appointing alternates. The rules of the Pro Bowl are different that regular NFL football. It is nothing more than a glorified scrimmage and it’s borderline embarrassing.
Mortensen told Mike and Mike this morning that the game is “on life support”. I say pull the plug. End this charade. The NFL Players Union might have issue with the elimination of the game because so many players have roster bonuses figured into their contracts, but players can still be voted on to an All-Star roster without having to play this dreadful game.
Arguments were made on talk radio this morning that players enjoy the trip to Hawaii. Well, players make a lot of money, they can take their family to Hawaii after the season ends by themselves.
When asked about the possibility of eliminating the Pro Bowl, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told the Associated Press, “no determination has been made about this season’s game.” The NBA, NHL and MLB all do a good job with their All-Star games, but they are all played mid-season. The Pro Bowl is an afterthought and a complete waste of time.
It is time for the NFL to stop the insanity and end the Pro Bowl. No one cares.
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Baloney. The Pro Bowl is just fine. For years and years it was a relaxed, laid back curtain call for the best players in the league. I always watched it. It didn’t matter who won, it was a last chance to see the league’s best, and an obvious honor to those players. Then, for no discernible reason, it was moved to before the Super Bowl, thus eliminating the very best players. Still, the TV ratings for the game have remained solid. The players like it (and they like it IN HAWAII). The fans like it. Who gives a s___t if the media likes it? The Pro Bowl is just fine.
This is about what everything else in sports is about, money. It’s why we have 2-3-2 playoff formats in the NBA instead of the much better 2-2-1-1-1 format. It’s why the NCAA “title game” (riotous laughter) includes only teams from rich conferences that have hefty contracts with ESPN. Eliminating the Pro Bowl will save the billionaires who run the league a few million bucks. Bring on Mr. Arrogance, Jim Rome, to say “quit whining. We all know it’s about money. So what?” Yeah, so what? The world of sports is as ethically and morally bankrupt as the American political system. So what?
Michael,
I appreciate your comment but I have to strongly disagree with you about the Pro Bowl. It is time for the NFL to move on from a game which is a mere shell of the actual game they play for 20 weeks. I’m really not too concerned about free trips for NFL players to Hawaii. Your disagreement drags on into your obvious dislike for ESPN.