Another year, another unimpressive Pro Bowl. The NFL draws such a major audience every season but significantly lacks in their "All-Star Game" which is a real buzzkill leading up to the biggest game of the year.
The NFL has changed a few things making it a little bit better than years prior, but there is a lot more that they can do to improve the quality of the Pro Bowl.
Problems
First, it's at the end of the season so the players don't really care. Who wants to watch a game where players half-ass it on the field where their main focus is not getting injured? No one. They players don't really try, therefore making it a boring game to watch.
The next issue is that a lot of legitimate Pro-Bowlers decline the invite and make up a bogus excuse as to why they can't be there. In this year's Pro Bowl we saw Jameis Winston, a QB whose team got last place in the NFC South with a 6-10 record... A QB on a 6-10 team shouldn't be in the Pro Bowl.
What is the NFL doing right?
I like the idea of mixing teams so it's not always NFC v AFC. The "draft" is a cool idea and I'm glad they've stuck with it.
I like that they're putting players in positions they don't normally play. We saw Odell Beckham Jr. at Free Safety and Richard Sherman run the ball (backward 22 yards) on a reverse run. I like that idea. Let's put all of the defensive players on offense and all of the offensive players on defense. That will attract viewers.
What could make the Pro Bowl better?
What makes the NBA, MLB, and NHL All-Star Breaks so appealing is the additional stuff they have on top of the actual All-Star Game. The NBA and NHL have different types of skills competitions where we get to see the best players flaunt their stuff. We also get big events like the Slam Dunk Contest in the NBA, the Shootout in the Skills Competition in the NHL, and, of course, the Home Run Derby in the MLB. There is none of that in the NFL. Maybe set up some hoops 40 yards away and have QBs show off their accuracy. How about a FG kick off? Seeing kickers bomb 60-70 yard field goals would be pretty cool. Maybe include an event with WRs in the end zone and force them to make some pretty tough/impressive catches?
Another viable option is to just abandon the Pro Bowl game altogether kind of like the NHL abandoned theirs and do what they did and make smaller 7-on-7 teams based on division. It'd be really cool to see an 8-team Round Robin tournament where Aaron Rodgers, Adrian Peterson, Jordy Nelson, Calvin Johnson, and Alshon Jeffery represent the NFC North and face off against guys like Tom Brady, LeSean McCoy, Rob Gronkowski, Brandon Marshall, and Jarvis Landry in the AFC East. No pads, minimal risk of an injury, it'd be perfect for the NFL.
Last idea: Celebrity Football Game??? Think about it.
