Now that we know for certain that it will be the New England Patriots versus the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII, the Pro Bowl rosters have also been updated. All the members of the Eagles and Patriots who were honored with a Pro Bowl selection must now withdraw from the exhibition game, as they have a much more important business trip to Minnesota to prepare for.
The original Pro Bowl rosters were announced on December 20, but since then we’ve learned that several players won’t be able to participate. Now that we’re in the home stretch, and we know who’s in and who’s out, it’s time to preview and handicap the NFL All-Star game which commences at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida this Sunday 1/28 at 3PM eastern.
The NFC are slightly favored over the AFC in what is annually a very high scoring game. You might want to head over to BetNow sportsbook and see what they currently have set the over/under at. The Pro Bowl is a game where tradition dictates defense optional, so we could see more than 80 points combined on Sunday afternoon. Whereas your typical NFL game might see bettors focus in on the money line or the spread, this one is all about the over/under.
After three seasons which saw the NFL get away from the traditional conference versus conference format, the national football league went back to their AFC vs NFC format roots in 2016. Like all pro sports All-Star games, the NFL’s Pro Bowl has consistently tinkered with format in recent years, in order to try and bolster sagging interest. Will a turn back to the traditional boost interest? Well, I guess we’ll just have to see how the ratings and attendance numbers end up.
Derek Carr of the Raiders will replaced the Patriots Tom Brady at quarterback in this one. Sticking with Patriots players being replaced, it’s Jack Doyle of the Colts coming in for Rob Gronkowski at tight end, Roosevelt Nix of the Steelers subbing for James Develin at fullback, Brynden Trawick for Matthew Slater at special teams.
On the other sideline, the Eagles replacements are as follows- the Rams’ Jared Goff for Carson Wentz (the 2016 #1 pick taking the slot of the #2 overall pick) at QB, the Cowboys’ Jason Witten for Zach Ertz at tight end, the Vikings Linval Johnson replaces Fletcher Cox at defensive line and Keanu Neal in for Malcolm Jenkins at strong safety. Additionally, offensive lineman Lane Johnson will also be replaced.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV and the Tribune company’s blogging community Chicago Now.
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