Does being selected to the Pro Bowl mean anything?

[Vintage]

Pretty simple, choose one.

I don't see where the "poll" option is, so I cannot make it a poll.

I should have clarified. Does the Pro Bowl mean anything to you when trying to defend/criticise another player.

Obviously it matters to the players for recognition/salary...but I don't care about their opinions.

I am just trying to find out how fans here view the Pro Bowl.


_______________________________________


My choice is no.

 

[THUMPER]

Pretty simple, choose one.

I don't see where the "poll" option is, so I cannot make it a poll.


_______________________________________


My choice is no.

Yes.

I do believe that it means "something" but not as much as it once did. Back in the day when coaches (and players?) selected the players it meant a lot more but now that it is a combination of coaches and fans and who knows who else, it is definitely more of a popularity contest and has more to do with name recognition than with actual merit.

That said, the coaches do still have some weight in who is selected so it is not strictly a popularity contest.

 

[Stash]

I agree.

It's certainly lost some of its' luster and importance.

When players are voted in by popularity instead of productivity, it cheapens the honor.

 

[Hostile]

To the players and some fans of course it does.

To me personally it does not, but I am not vain enough to sit here and say it doesn't matter at all. I haven't watched the Pro Bowl since the Switzer hot dog incident. That really turned my stomach. I don't watch other sports all star games either though. I'm proud of our players that make it. I get pissed when someone deserving doesn't. So in that sense I'd say it does matter even to me a little bit.

Often players have bonuses tied to making the Pro Bowl. I'd say that matters too. To them, and to the salary cap.

 

[flashback]

Yeah, it means something, but it doesn't always mean the same thing. For instance, Sean Taylor made the Pro Bowl last year for a very different reason than, say, Steve Hutchinson.

 

[Vintage]

To the players and some fans of course it does.

To me personally it does not, but I am not vain enough to sit here and say it doesn't matter at all. I haven't watched the Pro Bowl since the Switzer hot dog incident. That really turned my stomach. I don't watch other sports all star games either though. I'm proud of our players that make it. I get pissed when someone deserving doesn't. So in that sense I'd say it does matter even to me a little bit.

Often players have bonuses tied to making the Pro Bowl. I'd say that matters too. To them, and to the salary cap.

I should have clarified. Does the Pro Bowl mean anything to you when trying to defend/criticise another player.

Obviously it matters to the players for recognition/salary...but I don't care about their opinions.

I am just trying to find out how fans here view the Pro Bowl.

 

[Hostile]

I should have clarified. Does the Pro Bowl mean anything to you when trying to defend/criticise another player.

Obviously it matters to the players for recognition/salary...but I don't care about their opinions.

I am just trying to find out how fans here view the Pro Bowl.

I suppose I would have to say that in that circumstance I am a confessed hypocrite.

If one of our players doesn't make it and they deserve it, I am pissed. Terence Newman for example.

If another team's fan tells me that the player they are arguing for made the Pro Bowl I will poo poo the idea as being irrelevant since it is a "popularity contest."

I'm not proud of myself for this, but I hope you are that you drug this confession out of me.

 

[bobtheflob]

I think it's a good argument, but not a complete one by any means. The vast majority of the players who get voted in (not injury replacements) are legitimately good players. But there are enough spares that are popular, and enough underappreciated stars, that it certainly doesn't mean everything.

 

[YosemiteSam]

Does being selected to the Pro bowl mean anything?

It means a free trip to Hawaii.

 

[THUMPER]

I should have clarified. Does the Pro Bowl mean anything to you when trying to defend/criticise another player.

Obviously it matters to the players for recognition/salary...but I don't care about their opinions.

I am just trying to find out how fans here view the Pro Bowl.

The game itself is pretty meaningless but I am happy when our players are voted in or selected as replacements.

There are always players who we feel should or should not have been selected and that actually makes it more interesting.

 

[burmafrd]

When you get guys like LA getting another Pro Bowl nod- and he is not even top 10 any more- then it does cheapen the so called honor. And then you get someone like Sean Taylor who STANK last year. Or you get someone like Dangelo Hall- over T New who is better just about 95% of the time.

 

[THUMPER]

When you get guys like LA getting another Pro Bowl nod- and he is not even top 10 any more- then it does cheapen the so called honor. And then you get someone like Sean Taylor who STANK last year. Or you get someone like Dangelo Hall- over T New who is better just about 95% of the time.

Name recognition is definitely a reason why many guys are selected, even by the players.

 

[Hoov]

As a fan i could care less who makes the probowl and i never watch it.

If i was a player and got elected to the probowl i would pretty much think...

1) another pain in the butt thing for me to go deal with

2) well, i guess its a free vacation so i'll go play in this game than party hardy the rest of the time.

3) hey, can i get more money now cause i'm a "probowler" now

 

[Chuck 54]

duh....of course it means something. Fans may not agree with selections, and sometimes older players make it on reputation while some younger players make it on turnovers or a few huge games.

But...bottom line...it means you've earned the notice and respect of your fellow players and coaches around the league. It may not mean you are indeed one of the 2-3 best players at your position, but it DOES mean something...clearly making the ProBowl means you are one of the better players at your position.

 

[DallasEast]

I think it means something whether a player is voted or not voted into the Pro Bowl. My response on another thread concerning Pro Bowl balloting:

http://cowboyszone.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1517690&postcount=70

I believe that the entire process should be tweaked some more. Maybe the press can be counted as a fourth of the vote, but I don't like that idea very much due to the long-term bias which has been exhibited by pro hof selectors. Still, too many bad choices get in leaving deserving players out every year and that should be corrected asap.

 

[burmafrd]

Fans have no place in this process. Only current players and coaches. Of course there will still be some people left off or get on due to popularity- but it will not be as bad as it is now.

 

[AdamJT13]

Of course it means SOMETHING. But it doesn't necessarily mean that a player in the Pro Bowl is better than a player who's not in the Pro Bowl. It could just mean that the perception is that he's better. Or it could mean that he's more highly regarded. And often, it's based on talent and not performance, or it's based mostly on certain statistics and not overall performance.

Sometimes, you have to figure out WHY a player is or is not in the Pro Bowl (or among the alternates).

 

[DallasEast]

Of course it means SOMETHING. But it doesn't necessarily mean that a player in the Pro Bowl is better than a player who's not in the Pro Bowl. It could just mean that the perception is that he's better. Or it could mean that he's more highly regarded. And often, it's based on talent and not performance, or it's based mostly on certain statistics and not overall performance.

Sometimes, you have to figure out WHY a player is or is not in the Pro Bowl (or among the alternates).

Exactly.

 

[burmafrd]

When you get someone like T New who has never made the pro bowl, then get someone like Hall who has been to I think TWO of them, then you know there is a serious problem.

 

[DallasEast]

When you get someone like T New who has never made the pro bowl, then get someone like Hall who has been to I think TWO of them, then you know there is a serious problem.

But since pro bowl balloting is influenced by three different groups, using Newman and Hall as examples, three basic questions come to mind:

1. What percentage of fans preferred Newman or Hall more?
2. What percentage of their fellow players preferred Newman or Hall more?
3. What percentage of coaches preferred Newman or Hall more?

All three groups opinions weigh equally upon deciding who gets selected and who doesn't.