2022 Pro Bowl Snubs Who Won’t Be Missed by the Team in '23

It’s always been fascinating, across all sports, that some of the most spirited debates are centered over the games that don’t count.

Want to get a fan base riled up? Ask them about their favorite player not being named to the All-Star Game in baseball or basketball. And, in the NFL, it’s the Pro Bowl snub.

And the selections for the 2022 Pro Bowl were no different. It’s not that the players who were selected to the Pro Bowl by a combined vote of fans, players and coaches aren’t worthy. There are really very few, if any, picks that would go under the category of undeserved.

But there are only so many spots and so many players who are worthy of the honor that some are going to be left off. Here is a look at some of the players who watched the Pro Bowl from other than the sidelines in Las Vegas, and their chances of getting picked for the game in 2023:

Joe Burrow, Quarterback, Cincinnati Bengals

Burrow is probably not complaining about not being named to the Pro Bowl in his second season in the NFL, considering what he’s doing instead: Preparing to play in Super Bowl 56.

Burrow, perhaps unlike any other snub candidate, was a victim of the timing of the voting in 2021. The results were announced just prior to Week 16, which was the first of Burrow’s record-setting back-to-back 400-yard, four-touchdown, no-interception games that locked up the AFC North for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Meanwhile, Baltimore Ravens’ QB Lamar Jackson was voted in, despite missing the final four weeks of the regular season. Next season, another year removed from a knee injury in 2020, Burrow should make his Pro Bowl case right from the beginning.

Matthew Stafford, Quarterback, Los Angeles Rams

Stafford’s problem with making the Pro Bowl in 2021 had as much to do with the competition as his own season. Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady each had MVP-caliber seasons, which left the Los Angeles Rams quarterback vying for just one other spot, which went to Kyler Murray of the Arizona Cardinals.

While it’s a fair argument that Stafford should have gotten in ahead of Murray, particularly the way the two quarterbacks diverged in the final quarter of the season, next year should be a moot point. Brady has retired, and it’s entirely possible Rodgers is on an AFC team like the Denver Broncos in 2022, if he doesn’t shock the league and retire. The door should be wide open for Stafford to get his due.

Creed Humphrey, Center, Kansas City Chiefs

Humphrey cannot join Aaron Donald as players with long consecutive Pro Bowl streaks from the beginning of their careers, but the Chiefs’ rookie certainly showed he belongs on the team, allowing just one sack and ten pressures at the time of the Pro Bowl announcement in 2021.

The rookie from Oklahoma is going to be a dominant force at the center position for many years if he stays healthy, and having Patrick Mahomes taking your snaps doesn’t hurt your ability to play well, either.

A.J. Terrell, Cornerback, Atlanta Falcons

Trevon Diggs, Jalen Ramsey, Marshon Lattimore and Darius Slay are pretty much household names at cornerback in the NFC. But maybe it’s time for Terrell to be part of this conversation.

Pro Football Focus had Terrell graded as the highest-rated cornerback in the NFL when the Pro Bowl selections were announced. His coverage grade of 90.2 was also the highest in the league.

In 2020, Terrell was ranked 71^st among corners, so if he continues to make improvements in 2022, there’s little chance he won’t garner the attention needed to earn a Pro Bowl selection.

Roquan Smith, Inside/Middle Linebacker, Chicago Bears

Bobby Wagner of the Seattle Seahawks made his eighth straight Pro Bowl in 2021, but as the Seahawks’ defense continues its decline, it’s fair to wonder if that was the end of the run for the veteran linebacker.

Smith, on the other hand, is a rising star in the league who had a career-high 163 tackles in 2021, his fourth season in the league.

The other huge problem for Smith is that Dallas Cowboys rookie Micah Parsons, who is the odds-on favorite to be defensive player of the year, is listed as a linebacker, even though he excels as a down-lineman. If Parsons gets an official position change on next year’s ballot, keeping Smith off the team will be next to impossible.

Stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference

RELATED: From Joe Brrr to Joe Shiesty, Joe Burrow’s Long List of Nicknames Adds to His Legend

The post 2022 Pro Bowl Snubs Who Won’t Be Left Off the Team In ’23 appeared first on Sportscasting | Pure Sports.

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By: Jeff Goldberg
Title: 2022 Pro Bowl Snubs Who Won’t Be Left Off the Team In ’23
Sourced From: www.sportscasting.com/2022-pro-bowl-snubs-who-wont-be-left-off-team-2023/
Published Date: Sun, 06 Feb 2022 18:45:30 +0000