This is the last time this season you’ll get to watch a Saints player on the football field and it may be the last time you’ll ever see Carl Nicks wearing a Saints helmet. The NFC Pro Bowl squad will feature quarterback Drew Brees, tight end Jimmy Graham and offensive linemen Jahri Evans, Nicks and Jermon Bushrod. The game is slated for 7pm eastern (6pm New Orleans time) on NBC. Graham, Evans and Nicks will play with the starting units, while Brees and Bushrod will both come off the bench. I’ll include a little recap of how each guy did for those of you that skip it.
The only true interest I have other than seeing our guys do fairly well in this game is…
making sure they leave the game with no serious injuries. I still have haunting memories of Terrell Suggs wrecking Drew Brees’ left elbow in the 2007 game. The reality of the Pro Bowl is that the defenses don’t try very hard and the scoring gets kind of ridiculous. Since 1999 the lowest combined point total has 40 points, and the average total for both teams is just under 70 points. So expect a lot of scoring as always, poor tackling, no attempt on pass rushes, and little effort defensively. It’s basically a glorified flag football game with lots of explosive plays. The NFC has won 3 of the last 4 and there will be a little financial motivation to win. The players on the winning team receive $50,000 while the players on the losing team settle for half.
After the game we’ll turn our focus to the Super Bowl that pins Tom Brady’s Patriots against Eli Manning’s Giants, and the end of that game will signal the offseason where we can start concentrating on the offseason. Free agency and the draft is right around the corner.
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