Pro Bowl Ponderings

The NFL League Office has reportedly decided to shelve the Pro Bowl. Let’s be honest, the Pro Bowl was an offensive exhibition game, with defensive players just standing around. There was no hitting, there was no pass defense, and the score to the last Pro Bowl was AFC 59, NFC 41. That’s an Arena League score, not an NFL score.

And lately the players have been dropping out like crazy. None of the Super Bowl team players will be there, because they have a bigger game one week later. Several major stars are usually preparing to get back to health after the long grind of a season. It is an honor to be selected to the Pro Bowl. It was becoming a rarity to actually see the selected player at the event.

So I came up with a plan. Instead of shelving the Pro Bowl, move it to a different point in the season. The first preseason game is the NFL Hall of Fame Game. On August 5, 2012, the recently-lackluster Arizona Cardinals will play the suspension-depleted New Orleans Saints. Or rather, the fourth string of each team will play the majority of the game. This is the game that honors the Hall of Fame. So it seems like a good place to showcase the top-flight talent of the current NFL.

Take the Pro Bowl voting of the previous season and play the Pro Bowl in place of the Hall of Fame Game. This move would accomplish several things. It would better represent the sport as whole, rather than having guys play the majority of the game who will not see a single snap during the season, barring injury. It would bring back the casual fan who only watches for the superstars. It would allow the NFL to honor some of their retired coaches by using them during the game. I would love to see a Pro Bowl, at the Hall of Fame, with Bill Cowher on one sideline and Tony Dungy on the other.

I admit, this will likely never happen. Every professional sport has some form of an All-Star Game. The NFL is the most popular of the major professional sports, but their All-Star Game is among the worst. Part of that is due to league mandates, which have essentially turned the Pro Bowl into a flag football contest. Still, it would be interesting to see in practice, at least once…