Meaningless football is still football, so of course we
still watched the 2019 Pro Bowl even though defense was optional, along with
any semblance of urgency.
And you know what? There were some pretty fun moments out
there in the pouring rain in Orlando, Fla. as the AFC All-Stars ran away with
the game, 26-7.
There were, of course, some stinkers on display, too.
These were the biggest winners and losers from the 2019 Pro
Bowl.
WINNER: PATRICK
MAHOMES GOT THE AFC OFF TO A HOT START
It should surprise absolutely nobody that the future MVP of
the league came out firing and got his team up early on Sunday.
Following up his legendary 2018 season, Mahomes helped the
AFC All-Stars go up 14-0 before exiting the game for good. Along the way, he
threw for 156 yards and a way-too-easy touchdown to Eric Ebron.
No other quarterback came close to matching what Mahomes did
in the Pro Bowl, and the AFC never looked back after Mahomes left the field.
LOSER: NFC OFFENSE
WAS AWFUL
Sure, it was wet. Sure, these players don’t really have any
chemistry. But, my goodness, what the NFC’s offense did (or more aptly, what it
didn’t do) was staggering.
No matter how you look at it, the NFC offense failed
miserably. Giving up six sacks. Going for a grand total of 159 yards. Gaining
just 10 first downs. It all stunk. And then, as if to highlight the entire
pathetic outing, Amari Cooper let a sure touchdown bounce right off his
facemask in the fourth quarter (watch here).
But hey, at least Saquon Barkley, Ezekiel Elliott and Alvin
Kamara got to rush the passer, right?
WINNER: KEENAN
ALLEN ROSE TO THE OCCASION
Out of all the big-time playmakers in Sunday’s Pro Bowl, Los
Angeles Chargers receiver Keenan Allen stood out as the biggest winner. In the
first half, he had four catches and went for 95 yards, including a 50-yarder
from the hand of Patrick Mahomes.
That 50-yard catch set up the second touchdown of the game
for the AFC All-Stars, and he also hauled in a key 22-yard reception on
3rd-and-10 in the second quarter to keep a drive alive that led to a field goal.
LOSER: TRUBISKY
REALLY STRUGGLED
Chicago Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky has a bright future
ahead of him. But his performance on Sunday was about as cloudy as the sky in
Orlando.
Sure, he completed 5-of-9 total passes, but he managed just
34 yards. Even worse, he should have thrown two interceptions.
The first awful throw ended up being an incompletion thanks
to Jamal Adams (more on that soon), and then his second — on the first play of
the third quarter, was picked off.
WINNER: SHERMAN
SHOWS FULLBACKS CAN BALL, TOO
One of the most underrated, yet key players for Kansas City
all year, fullback Anthony Sherman made his presence felt during the 2019 Pro
Bowl.
For starters, the powerful runner plowed his way into the
end zone to help the AFC go up 14-0 early in the second quarter.
LOSER: JAMAL ADAMS
BLEW IT (UP)
Earlier in the week, Jamal Adams made national headlines
when he blew up the
New England Patriots mascot during practice.
Well, he had another huge hit in the Pro Bowl, too. Only
this one was against his own teammate, and his big hit caused cornerback Xavien
Howard to drop an interception.
Even worse, Adams himself dropped an easy pick earlier in
the first half. So, he was responsible for two missed opportunities on what
should have been easy turnovers.
Though, he did have some fun in the second half when he
illegally lined up on the line of scrimmage and blew up Mitch Trubisky on a
would-be flea-flicker. Then, just a couple plays later, he came up with a very
easy pick on a trick play gone terribly wrong (watch here).
So, we can’t necessarily say Adams was a huge loser, but we
can’t say he was a winner, either.
WINNER: KYLE
FULLER WASN’T MESSING AROUND
On a wet, rainy day that saw stellar ball hawks like Jamal
Adams and Malcolm Jenkins drop easy interceptions, Chicago Bears cornerback
Kyle Fuller was locked in.
In the second quarter as Andrew Luck took over for the AFC
offense, Fuller read the route JuJu Smith-Schuster was running and actually
beat him to the spot. Then, as Luck tried to fire the ball to his receiver,
Fuller made a tremendous play to pick the ball off.
LOSER: JASON KEEPS
WITTENING IN THE BOOTH
ESPN has fully committed to the Jason Witten/Joe Tessitore
combination in the booth, so for the sake of ears nationwide we sure hope
Witten gets better at his job before next season. He was awful on
Monday nights all season long.
On Sunday during the Pro Bowl, he went full Stephen A. Smith
in the first quarter after Patrick Mahomes found Eric Ebron for the game’s
first touchdown (watch here).
Witten continues to just be awful at this. He tries so hard, and it’s rough
watching one of my favorite players of all-time on the field struggle so badly
from the booth.
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