The 2021 Pro Bowl was to be the National Football League (NFL) all-star game for the 2020 NFL season, originally scheduled to be played on January 31, 2021, at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada.
| Date | January 31, 2021 |
|---|---|
| Stadium | Game canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Alternative festivities were held in its place, including an esports exhibition game featuring the Pro Bowl rosters in Madden NFL 21 controlled by teams of NFL players, alumni, and celebrity guests, the game was won by the NFC 32–12 |
On October 14, 2020, the NFL announced that it had canceled the game due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and had deferred Las Vegas's hosting of the game to 2022. The league still conducted a fan vote to determine the Pro Bowl rosters, and instead organized alternative festivities such as Verzuz "highlight battles" featuring NFL players; and an esports exhibition featuring a game of Madden NFL 21 played with the Pro Bowl rosters (controlled by teams of NFL players, alumni, and celebrity guests) that was won by the NFC 32-12.
Background
editThe original site for the game was announced on June 16, 2020. The Las Vegas Raiders' home Allegiant Stadium's bid won out over Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida, and SoFi Stadium in the Los Angeles metro area.[1]
On October 14, 2020, the league decided to cancel the game amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and Allegiant Stadium was awarded the 2022 Pro Bowl instead.[2] The league further announced that the Pro Bowl rosters for the 2020 season would still be voted upon, and that they would instead hold alternative events to honor the players chosen.[3] Voting began on November 17, 2020, on the NFL's website and Madden NFL 21, and on Twitter starting on December 1. Voting on all platforms then ended on December 17 with the rosters being announced on December 21.[4][5]
Alternative events
editThe NFL partnered with Verzuz to air a series of Pro Bowl "highlight battles" from January 26 through 29.[6]
ABC, ESPN, and Disney XD aired a television special on January 31 in place of the game—the Pro Bowl Celebration—which was presented by ESPN's NFL studio analysts, and featured segments and interviews honoring the Pro Bowl roster.[7][8][9]
Pro Bowl esports exhibition
editThe esports exhibition was played from their respective homes, in order, quarterback Deshaun Watson (Houston Texans), former wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson, running back Derrick Henry (Tennessee Titans), and rapper Snoop Dogg each played one quarter as the AFC team, while quarterback Kyler Murray (Arizona Cardinals), NASCAR Cup Series driver Bubba Wallace (23XI Racing), strong safety Jamal Adams (Seattle Seahawks), and former running back Marshawn Lynch each played one quarter as the NFC team.[10]
Esports box score
edit| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AFC | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 12 |
| NFC | 7 | 19 | 6 | 0 | 32 |
at N/A (Madden NFL 21)
- Date: January 31, 2021
- Game time: 5:00 p.m. EST
- Source: NFL Pro Bowl: Madden '21 Edition on YouTube
AFC roster
editOffense
edit| Position | Starter(s) | Reserve(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterback | 15 Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City |
17 Josh Allen, Buffalo 4 Deshaun Watson, Houston |
| Running back | 22 Derrick Henry, Tennessee | 24 Nick Chubb, Cleveland 28 Josh Jacobs, Las Vegas |
| Fullback | 42 Patrick Ricard, Baltimore | |
| Wide receiver | 10 Tyreek Hill, Kansas City 14 Stefon Diggs, Buffalo |
13 Keenan Allen, LA Chargers 11 A. J. Brown, Tennessee |
| Tight end | 87 Travis Kelce, Kansas City | 83 Darren Waller, Las Vegas |
| Offensive tackle | 72 Eric Fisher, Kansas City 78 Laremy Tunsil, Houston |
78 Orlando Brown Jr., Baltimore |
| Offensive guard | 75 Joel Bitonio, Cleveland 56 Quenton Nelson, Indianapolis |
66 David DeCastro, Pittsburgh |
| Center | 53 Maurkice Pouncey, Pittsburgh | 78 Ryan Kelly, Indianapolis |
Defense
edit| Position | Starter(s) | Reserve(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Defensive end | 97 Joey Bosa, LA Chargers 95 Myles Garrett, Cleveland |
55 Frank Clark, Kansas City |
| Defensive tackle | 97 Cameron Heyward, Pittsburgh 95 Chris Jones, Kansas City |
93 Calais Campbell, Baltimore |
| Outside linebacker | 55 Bradley Chubb, Denver 90 T. J. Watt, Pittsburgh |
99 Matthew Judon, Baltimore |
| Inside linebacker | 53 Darius Leonard, Indianapolis | 49 Tremaine Edmunds, Buffalo |
| Cornerback | 25 Xavien Howard, Miami 27 Tre'Davious White, Buffalo |
24 Stephon Gilmore, New England 44 Marlon Humphrey, Baltimore |
| Free safety | 39 Minkah Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh | 31 Justin Simmons, Denver |
| Strong safety | 32 Tyrann Mathieu, Kansas City |
Special teams
edit| Position | Starter(s) |
|---|---|
| Punter | 7 Jake Bailey, New England |
| Placekicker | 9 Justin Tucker, Baltimore |
| Return specialist | 18 Andre Roberts, Buffalo |
| Special teams | 18 Matthew Slater, New England |
| Long snapper | 46 Morgan Cox, Baltimore |
NFC roster
editOffense
edit| Position(s) | Starter(s) | Reserve(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterback | 12 Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay | 3 Russell Wilson, Seattle 1 Kyler Murray, Arizona |
| Running back | 33 Dalvin Cook, Minnesota | 41 Alvin Kamara, New Orleans 33 Aaron Jones, Green Bay |
| Fullback | 44 Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco | |
| Wide receiver | 17 Davante Adams, Green Bay 10 DeAndre Hopkins, Arizona |
14 DK Metcalf, Seattle 18 Justin Jefferson, Minnesota |
| Tight end | 88 T. J. Hockenson, Detroit | 88 Evan Engram, NY Giants |
| Offensive tackle | 69 David Bakhtiari, Green Bay 71 Trent Williams, San Francisco |
72 Terron Armstead, New Orleans |
| Offensive guard | 75 Brandon Scherff, Washington 74 Elgton Jenkins, Green Bay |
75 Andrus Peat, New Orleans |
| Center | 62 Jason Kelce, Philadelphia | 77 Frank Ragnow, Detroit |
Defense
edit| Position | Starter(s) | Reserve(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Defensive end | 94 Cameron Jordan, New Orleans 55 Brandon Graham, Philadelphia |
99 Chase Young, Washington |
| Defensive tackle | 99 Aaron Donald, LA Rams 91 Fletcher Cox, Philadelphia |
97 Grady Jarrett, Atlanta |
| Outside linebacker | 55 Za'Darius Smith, Green Bay 52 Khalil Mack, Chicago |
90 Jason Pierre-Paul, Tampa Bay |
| Inside linebacker | 54 Bobby Wagner, Seattle | 54 Fred Warner, San Francisco |
| Cornerback | 20 Jalen Ramsey, LA Rams 23 Jaire Alexander, Green Bay |
23 Marshon Lattimore, New Orleans 24 James Bradberry, NY Giants |
| Free safety | 37 Quandre Diggs, Seattle | 33 Jamal Adams, Seattle |
| Strong safety | 32 Budda Baker, Arizona |
Special teams
edit| Position | Starter(s) |
|---|---|
| Punter | 3 Jack Fox, Detroit |
| Placekicker | 7 Younghoe Koo, Atlanta |
| Return specialist | 84 Cordarrelle Patterson, Chicago |
| Special teams | 44 Nick Bellore, Seattle |
| Long snapper | 69 Tyler Ott, Seattle |
Number of selections per team
edit
|
|
References
edit- ^ Richard Bilbao. "Orlando Eyes Yet Another Year Of The Pro Bowl". Orlando Business Journal. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
- ^ "NFL to reimagine 2021 Pro Bowl; '22 Pro Bowl awarded to Las Vegas". www.nfl.com. Archived from the original on October 30, 2023. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ Smith, Michael David (October 14, 2020). "Pro Bowl will not be played this season". Pro Football Talk. Archived from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ Rapp, Timothy. "NFL Announces Format, Schedule, Voting for Virtual Madden 21 Pro Bowl". Bleacher Report. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
- ^ "NFL reveals complete AFC, NFC rosters for 2021 Pro Bowl". NFL.com. December 22, 2020. Archived from the original on December 22, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
- ^ "NFL teams up with Verzuz for first-ever "NFL Pro Bowl Verzuz presented by Verizon"". NFL.com. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
- ^ Lucia, Joe (January 28, 2021). "The "Pro Bowl Celebration" seems like it will mostly be highlights and interviews". Awful Announcing. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
- ^ "The 2021 Pro Bowl Celebration presented by Verizon Premieres Sunday, Jan. 31, at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN, ABC and Disney XD". ESPN Press Room U.S. January 28, 2021. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
- ^ Nguyen, Kevin (November 17, 2020). "The NFL Pro Bowl will be hosted in Madden this season". The Verge. Archived from the original on November 17, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
- ^ Rothstein, Michael (January 25, 2021). "Deshaun Watson, Kyler Murray, Jamal Adams, Derrick Henry playing virtual Pro Bowl using Madden NFL 21". ESPN. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.