An event that used to be an assembly of the best talent that the NFL has to offer has now become a relic struggling to maintain its existence. The fact that the league has used so many tweaks and adjustments to the Pro Bowl is a telling sign for the once great spectacle’s impending doom. However, I’m not here to bash the game or millennials or anyone else. This is just a look back at some classic Pro Bowl moments and an examination of how this was bound to happen.
When people compare it to the NBA All-Star Weekend and its success they forget one vital piece of information … They’re not the same sport. Basketball and football are so different in nature and thusly their respective all-star games are viewed differently. Football is a gladiator sport, meaning people go for the violence and intensity. Basketball is a sport of great skill and much less physicality. NBA all-star games never see any defense and no one complains. But one constant demand from football fans was that they wanted to see the high-flying, hard-hitting action of a playoff game. How can you expect a highly energized game, when these players’ seasons are over?
NBA All-Star Weekend is during the middle of the season. Players are awarded a mid-season rest, and the best basketball players in the world have the opportunity to showcase their skills. On the other hand, NFL players have nothing to play for. The skills challenge addition helps, but the season is over. Most of the players elected to the Pro Bowl decline to participate, probably due to their offseason vacation plans. Once players opt out, the NFL invites less talented players to compete, featuring a watered-down competition field. Despite the winning team receiving a $60,000 bonus check, these athletes would rather skip the snooze fest and start their own vacation.
However, I urge that we don’t kick the poor Pro Bowl while it’s down. We should remember the fond memories of what it used to be. Some of the most memorable moments in NFL history have happened at this game. They range from the extremely violent all the way to the sappy moments that could only be acceptable in a Nicholas Sparks novel.
On the sentimental side, viewers were able to witness one of the most heartfelt moments of all time during the 2013 Pro Bowl. Former Indianapolis Colts center Jeff Saturday was playing for the Green Bay Packers in 2012; therefore, he landed on the NFC squad. His old friend and longtime quarterback Peyton Manning was on the Denver Broncos, competing for the AFC. Saturday had already announced that he intended to retire immediately following the Pro Bowl. So for one play he switched teams to play for the AFC, in order for his last career snap to be to one of his best friends, a touching moment to say the least.
As for the violent side, one trick play in the 2007 Pro Bowl will never be forgotten by football fans. Sean Taylor was one of the greatest hitters of all time regardless of position, and he had one of the most iconic bone-crushing hits in NFL history on poor old Brian Moorman. The AFC decided to run a fake punt on fourth and seven. Moorman came around the right side of the field, when Taylor met him two yards short of the first down and absolutely obliterated him. Taylor and his teammates on team NFC celebrated and Moorman came across to field to congratulate him on the hit.
There are obviously the auxiliary moments as well. The Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame offensive guard Larry Allen bench pressing 225 lbs. over 40 times was simply amazing. Most humans can’t do it once, let alone 43 times. Once the Pro Bowl became a pickup game instead of divide by conference, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson started early as he laid his own teammate, running back Jamaal Charles, out.
Although the Pro Bowl has lost its star-studded atmosphere and high-profile talent, there are many marquee moments football fans should cherish from years past. As Dr. Seuss once said, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”
