The Eagle’s Cry Sports NFC Pro Bowl Roster Selections

Brett Jassey, Sports Editor|December 8, 2022

Although over the offseason, the NFL decided to scrap the actual Pro Bowl game, the honor of being selected to a Pro Bowl still exists for the best football players in the world. As the fan voting period has begun for the 2023 Pro Bowl, I’m going to explain who would be my picks as a neutral voter, and in this article, I will evaluate my picks for the NFC. The starter(s) at each position will be italicized.

To start off the offense, the playcallers at QB…

Quarterback (3 selections):

Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia

Geno Smith, Seattle

Kirk Cousins, Minnesota

Hurts’ breakout season has been the main reason the Eagles have succeeded so much. I never would have imagined Smith would make such big strides that have allowed him to be considered Pro-Bowl worthy, but he did, so he and Cousins will get the nod to round out the position. Justin Fields, Dak Prescott, and Daniel Jones missed the cut.

Runningback (3 selections):

Saquon Barkley, New York N

Aaron Jones, Green Bay

Dalvin Cook, Minnesota

Barkley has found sustained success this year as he has been healthy, establishing himself firmly as one of the league’s best runningbacks and most valuable players. Jones and Cook have continued their reign as elite backs, just edging out Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara, Tony Pollard, Kenneth Walker III, and Jamaal Williams.

Fullback (1 selection):

Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco

Mr. Alphabet has been the best fullback in the NFL for years, without much debate. CJ Ham for the Vikings is worth a mention as well, but Juicy J Juszczyk has this position to himself.

Wide Receiver (4 selections):

Justin Jefferson, Minnesota

A.J. Brown, Philadelphia

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles N

Terry McLaurin, Washington

Jefferson has been the best wide receiver in the NFL, and an easy pick here. Kupp and Brown completely elevate their respective offenses. This fourth spot was tough, but I gave the nod to McLaurin, who is underestimated by the NFL community sometimes. Ceedee Lamb, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Chris Olave, Mike Evans, Tyler Lockett, Christian Watson and Brandon Aiyuk are all deserving of being Pro-Bowlers, but I can only pick four.

Tight End (2 selections):

Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia

T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota

Goedert has been the perfect complimentary piece in this offense, giving him the second most yards of any tight end. T.J. Hockenson rounds out the position, as his time with the Lions and Vikings has been full of good performances.

Offensive Tackle (3 selections):

Trent Williams, San Francisco

Tristan Wirfs, Tampa Bay

Jordan Mailata, Philadelphia

Williams is one of the best tackles ever, and Wirfs seems to be on his way to that status. Both are locks to be starters. Mailata got my selection at a pretty stacked position, beating out David Bakhtiari, Ryan Ramczyk, Penei Sewell, and his teammate, Lane Johnson.

Offensive Guard (3 selections):

Zack Martin, Dallas

Chris Lindstrom, Atlanta

Elgton Jenkins, Green Bay

Martin is annually a top interior lineman, and Lindstrom and Jenkins will round out the position as anchors for their respective NFC South offenses.

Center (2 selections):

Jason Kelce, Philadelphia

Frank Ragnow, Detroit

Kelce has been an elite center for a decade plus, and will join his brother in the Hall of Fame eventually. Ragnow has been the snapper for the Lions and excelled, allowing their run game to flourish.

And now the defensive side of the ball…

Defensive End (3 selections):

Nick Bosa, San Francisco

Brian Burns, Carolina

Montez Sweat, Washington

Bosa leads all D-linemen in sacks and commands that elite 49ers defense. Burns has been a phenomenal young player for a struggling Panthers team, and Sweat rounds out the position as he has done great in Chase Young’s absence. Veterans Cam Jordan and J.J Watt fell just short of the final selections.

Defensive Tackle (3 selections):

Aaron Donald, Los Angeles N

Vita Vea, Tampa Bay

Javon Hargrave, Philadelphia

There has not and will not be a season for a while where Aaron Donald is not a Pro-Bowler. Now after that, it got dicey, as there are loads of talent at this position. Vea and Hargrave just edged out Dexter Lawrence, Daron Payne, Jonathan Allen, and Derrick Brown for these final spots.

Outside Linebackers (3 selections):

Za’darius Smith, Minnesota

Haason Reddick, Philadelphia

Rashan Gary, Green Bay

Smith and Reddick are huge reasons for their teams success off the edge, while Gary had a great season before his injury. If there was a real game, Danielle Hunter would take his spot as the final edge, but there isn’t, so his injury is unimportant to his selection.

Inside Linebackers (2 selections):

Micah Parsons, Dallas

Devin White, Tampa Bay

Parsons is impossible to place under only one position, but for the sake of this, I placed him as an inside linebacker, and an easy choice as my starter. He can easily be an OLB or DE on the final official ballot. White is another easy pick to round out the position, as he is a true middle linebacker.

Cornerbacks (4 selections):

James Bradberry, Philadelphia

Tariq Woolen, Seattle

Jaire Alexander, Green Bay

Darius Slay, Philadelphia

Bradberry is experiencing a great renaissance of his career as a shutdown corner across from Darius Slay in Philly, who just made the cut. Rookie Tariq Woolen has been a monster, as has the veteran Alexander. Trevon Diggs and Jalen Ramsey are very honorable mentions.

Strong Safety (1 selection):

Jaquan Brisker, Chicago

Brisker has revitalized this Bears secondary as a rookie, and is my second rookie starter in this secondary and on this team.

Free Safeties (2 selections):

Budda Baker, Arizona

Talanoa Hufanga, San Francisco

Baker continues his strong career as my starter here, and Hufanga has nearly come out of nowhere and became a total difference maker in this 49ers defense.

Kicker (1 selection):

Cairo Santos, Chicago

The veteran placekicker is a perfect 100% this season for the Bears.

Punter (1 selection):

Johnny Hekker, Carolina

The Panthers really get their money’s worth from one of the best punters ever, cause they punt a lot!

Long Snapper (1 selection):

Zach Wood, New Orleans

Since I know nothing about long snappers, and the Saints had no previous selections, I’ll give Mr. Wood the position.

Return Specialist (1 selection):

KaVaontae Turpin, Dallas

This guy went crazy on returns in the preseason, so that’s close enough, right?