Stop the Pro Bowl for the good of everything that is football

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Emmett Schindler, News editor

Throughout the NFL season, some players show more skill than others, defined as “Pro-Bowlers.” By a fan vote, these players trek to Hawaii and keep playing after the regular season and a week before the Super Bowl, with disappointing outcomes.

Every year, the elected football players travel to Hawaii, playing in one more game, meaning absolutely nothing. Unlike the baseball All-Star game where the winning league gets home-field advantage in the World Series, the Pro-Bowl stays pointless. It stands as another way to get injured, without any benefits in the end, putting players even more at risk.

Fans witness a popular trend for players selected: dropping out. This year, every single Patriot that got selected decided to opt out and stay at home with their families. Also, out of the six quarterbacks initially selected, only one, Russell Wilson, will play. These players would rather not try their luck with concussions or injury to the extent of missing next season, a smarter idea than to play.
The Pro Bowl previously existed as two conferences against each other, AFC vs. NFC, which at least made it somewhat competitive. Now, hall-of-famers Michael Irvin and Jerry Rice select the players in a Fantasy Draft. So now they simply place the players on a random team and throw them onto the field to hit each other.

Some may say that the players just mess around and hit each other lightly. But they still play football, and football involves tackling. Despite the numerous rules prohibiting helmet-to-helmet contact, players have not stopped those dirty hits and will likely continue to do so, as now it just comes as an instinct.

The pointless hitting and waste of time makes no sense for the Pro Bowl to continue. Instead, just take the best players out to a nice dinner.