|  | | San Francisco's Fred Beasley deserved to be the NFC fullback over Mike Alstott. |
No game on the NFL schedule produces less passion than the annual Pro Bowl contest. Yet, at the same time, no contest generates more debate over who gets to play in the game.
There is never a shortage of opinions on which players are and aren't selected to participate in the all-expenses paid trip to Hawaii, and a quick perusal of the 2001 conference rosters, released Wednesday by the league, indicates this season will be no different.
The irony is that most of the vocal consternation comes from players themselves, who take great glee in annually suggesting the media knows little about the sport and then typically display their own ignorance with their one-third input into the process.
Once again, the Pro Bowl vote was revealed as a popularity contest with some unpopular results. And it's a good bet that the players complaining the most about the balloting were the ones who did the least amount of background research on which of their peers played well this season.
"Guys still don't take it seriously enough," said one AFC team captain who presided over voting in his locker room. "Some guys still vote for friends. Others vote for some off-the-wall player to protect a guy on their own team. And there's no set system for voting from team to team, since each club kind of determines itself how to do it. But the players are the ones who (complain) the loudest once the voting is announced."
There was the usual degree of incredulity that accompanied this year's results, but few of the offended were willing to air their grievances on the record. The biggest complaint: Some of the players who monitored the fan balloting, which represents one-third of the process, assumed the trends established there would hold up.
Of course, that wasn't the case, as was painfully discovered by players such as Tony Richardson. The Kansas City fullback won the AFC balloting for his position in a landslide but didn't earn a spot on the roster, losing out to Buffalo Bills counterpart Larry Centers. The truth is, Richardson and Mack Strong of Seattle probably were more deserving.
There were some on-target choices in the balloting, especially in the two offensive line units, for both conferences. Two of the best weakside blockers in the league are Seattle tackle Walter Jones and Pittsburgh guard Alan Faneca, and both of the youngsters were selected to the AFC squad. Ditto Lincoln Kennedy of the Oakland Raiders, arguably the premier strongside offensive tackle in the NFL and a guy who shut down New York Giants defensive end Michael Strahan.
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While Bruce Matthews is undoubtedly one of the league's classiest performers, he was awful in 2001 at both guard and center. There is no way he should have earned a center spot on the AFC team. |
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At the same time, though, there were just as many dubious offensive line choices: Mark Tauscher of Green Bay is the NFC's best right tackle but lost out to James "Big Cat" Williams of Chicago. Giants right guard Ron Stone, who has suffered through a miserable year, got the nod over Arizona first-round choice Leonard Davis, who some feel is the league's best offensive rookie at any position. And while Tennessee graybeard Bruce Matthews is undoubtedly one of the league's classiest performers, he was awful in 2001 at both guard and center. There is no way he should have earned a center spot on the AFC team.
Other players who clearly benefited from their stellar reputations: Baltimore tight end Shannon Sharpe, Kansas City guard Will Shields, San Diego linebacker Junior Seau, the Woodson entry of cornerback Charles (Oakland) and free safety Rod (Baltimore), Carolina tight end Wesley Walls, Tampa Bay fullback Mike Alstott, Bucs defensive tackle Warren Sapp, New York Giants weakside linebacker Jessie Armstead and Bears special teams ace Larry Whigham.
As usual, there were several oversights, and here is a look at the most glaring:
Byron Chamberlain, Vikings tight end: He is a willing but only modestly effective blocker, and that apparently hurt him in the balloting. Somehow, the electorate suddenly decided to look past a tight end's receptions totals, since Chamberlain leads all the NFC players at his position with 54, and determine his value by all-around play. A novel yet correct approach, but one that killed Chamberlain's chances.
James Farrior, Jets weakside linebacker: Miscast in the 3-4 front the Jets formerly played, he has blossomed this season and leads the team in tackles. A pending free agent, New York brass has made his retention a priority. Who should he have beaten out in the trio of AFC linebackers that were picked for the game? How about Seau, who is still a good player but has tailed off the past couple of seasons.
Leonard Davis, Cardinals offensive guard: A mauler on the interior who will move to
tackle next season, Davis should be the offensive rookie of the year. That past Pro Bowl player Stone of the Giants was named to the team is a travesty. Even by his own admission, Stone had a poor season.
Phillip Daniels, Bears defensive end: He will never be a consistent double-digit sacker, and the Bears overpaid for him in free agency a couple of years ago. But he has answered all of the questions about his toughness, is a terrific two-way defender now and plays on one of the best defenses in the league. He certainly should have made the team over Robert Porcher of Detroit, and you can make an argument that he's having a better year than Hugh Douglas of the Eagles, who has only two sacks in the past seven outings. Joe Johnson of New Orleans, even with his injuries, would also have been a solid selection.
Fred Beasley, 49ers fullback: Maybe someday fans and players will finally acknowledge that Mike Alstott of Tampa Bay is one of the league's most overrated players and that he isn't even a fullback. Alstott is a fine receiver but overhyped as a blocker, and he performs best in one-back situations. It's nice to think to think outside the envelope, but the fact is Alstott does not fit the fullback mold. Beasley, and even Bob Christian of Atlanta, are more deserving. Beasley is a superior blocker and receiver and Christian always gives up his body.
Nate Wayne, Packers weakside linebacker, and Warrick Holdman, Bears weakside linebacker: How these guys rated behind the Giants' Jessie Armstead, who hasn't played well for two straight seasons, is a mystery. Both are very active and Holdman is now starting to rush the passer with increasingly
effectiveness. Wayne is a fluid athlete who has missed some time with a back strain but who certainly is an emerging performer.
Ted Washington, Bears defensive tackle: He's fat, he's surly, he's rarely on the field
for third down. But the mammoth Washington, and his ability to keep blockers away from linebacker Brian Urlacher, is a key to the Bears' improvement. At the tackle spot, La'Roi Glover is a shadow of what he was in 2000, perhaps because runningmate Norman Hand has been injured, and Warren Sapp has not been the dominating player he was in past seasons. Washington deserved the nod over both of those players.
Aaron Glenn, Jets cornerback: A knee injury sidelined him for three of
the past four games, but when coordinator Ted Cottrell switched to a "cover
three" scheme midway through the year, Glenn became a top-flight
single-coverage defender again. He has five interceptions and nearly every
week before the injury took on the opposition's top wide receiver. He is a
better coverage player than Deltha O'Neal of Denver and had as good a year
as Oakland's much-hyped Charles Woodson, who spent a couple of weeks playing
only on third down because of a toe injury. Even Sam Madison of Miami, the
third corner selected for the AFC team, had an off year.
Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.
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