What happened to the Pro Bowl?

Should the Pro Bowl be thrown away?

Some+of+the+NFLs+superstars+in+the+Pro+Bowl

NFL

Some of the NFL’s superstars in the Pro Bowl

Cam Benedict, Staff Writer

The Pro Bowl, where the most elite athletes of the NFL go to show off their skills, and talents, and why they deserve to be there–at least that’s what it used to be, so what happened to it. 

The Pro Bowl use to be so entertaining and electric, and had some of the best plays throughout the season. It was awesome to see your favorite players play together on the same team. Who wouldn’t want to watch two super teams go head head to head to the final play for a victory for their division?

The Pro Bowl used to be a full contact tackle game. It has basically converged into little contact if no contact at all years later. The main reason players didn’t want to actually tackle each other is because they didn’t want to cause injuries that would impact them throughout the actual season. There is no actual rule against it, but players essentially created a gentlemen’s agreement.

Back in the 2007 Pro Bowl, Sean Taylor who played for the Washington Redskins had one of, if not the biggest hits in Pro Bowl history. This hit made players and the NFL question whether or not they should allow full contact. Players since have preferred lighter contact and have not participated in destroying each other for fun. 

Punter, Brian Moorman on the ground after a violent hit from Sean Taylor (NBC SPORTS)

What is the Pro Bowl like today? The Pro Bowl now consists of fun mini games like dodge ball, flag football, and skill games. They have completely got rid of the actual game!

Lots of people have mixed feelings about it. Some say the Pro Bowl should just be done and discontinued, and others are big fans of the new additions they added.

Personally I like the new format, People need to realize that things change and they have to get used to it. The new mini games they added were fun to watch and were really entertaining. The flag football game was innovative and I would like to see it for the upcoming seasons, and dodge ball is always fun to watch especially when your favorite NFL players are participating in it

Was flag football the right move? or does the traditional game need its return (ESPN)

One of the main issues about the Pro Bowl currently is that it is before the Super Bowl. This is a problem because some of the players drop out of the Pro Bowl because they are in playoffs or the Super Bowl. They don’t want to get hurt by fooling around in something that doesn’t really matter. Players like Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts chose not to participate because they advanced further into the post-season. Then they are replaced with other players who shouldn’t even qualify to be in the Pro Bowl making it less fun to watch. 

So what should they do? I think they should continue the Pro Bowl how it was this year, but add more fun activities. Yes it isn’t like it use to be, but that doesn’t mean it still can’t be fun.

I think the main focus of the Pro Bowl from now on should be skill competitions and then one big flag football game. Skill competitions are where players can actually show why they deserve to be there, and why they were named as the best players in the league, and flag football because the players have a less chance of getting hurt and its still entertaining. This allows the players to have fun, the fans to be entertained, and everyone to stay healthy and safe.