2012 Pro Bowl

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2012 NFL Pro Bowl
250px
1 2 3 4 Total
NFC 14 14 7 6 41
AFC 14 14 10 21 59
Date January 29, 2012
Stadium Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii
MVP Brandon Marshall (Miami Dolphins)
Referee Walt Coleman
Attendance 48,423
Ceremonies
National anthem TSgt Richard Vazquez, USAF
Coin toss MG Rodger Mathews, U.S. Army; LtGen Thomas L. Conant, U.S. Marines & Maj Gen Darryll Wong, USAF
Halftime show "NFL Salute to Service" (tribute to U.S. Armed Forces)
TV in the United States
Network NBC
Announcers Dan Hicks, Mike Mayock, Doug Flutie, Alex Flanagan and Randy Moss
Nielsen ratings 7.9 (nationally)

The 2012 Pro Bowl was the NFL's all-star game for the 2011 season. It took place at 2:00 pm local time on Sunday, January 29, 2012 at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The AFC defeated the NFC, 59–41.[1][2]

The 59 points scored by the AFC team were a Pro Bowl record, and the combined 100 total points was second in the series' history to only the 2004 Pro Bowl.[2] Miami Dolphins wide receiver Brandon Marshall was named the game's Most Valuable Player after catching four touchdown passes, breaking the record for touchdown receptions in a Pro Bowl which was set by Jimmy Smith in 2004.[2]

The AFC team was coached by Gary Kubiak of the Houston Texans while Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy led the NFC all-stars.[3] The referee for the game was Walt Coleman.[4]

Scoring summary

Scoring Play[4] Score
1st quarter
NFC – Larry Fitzgerald 10 yd. pass from Aaron Rodgers (David Akers kick) NFC 7–0
NFC – Larry Fitzgerald 44 yd. pass from Aaron Rodgers (David Akers kick) NFC 14–0
AFC – A. J. Green 34 yd. pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Sebastian Janikowski kick) NFC 14–7
AFC – Brandon Marshall 74 yd. pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Sebastian Janikowski kick) Tied 14–14
2nd quarter
NFC – Jimmy Graham 2 yd. pass from Drew Brees (David Akers kick) NFC 21–14
AFC – Brandon Marshall 29 yd. pass from Philip Rivers (Sebastian Janikowski kick) Tied 21–21
NFC – Greg Jennings 11 yd. pass from Drew Brees (David Akers kick) NFC 28–21
AFC – Antonio Gates 27 yd. pass from Philip Rivers (Sebastian Janikowski kick) Tied 28–28
3rd quarter
AFC – Sebastian Janikowski 37 yd. Field Goal AFC 31–28
NFC – Steve Smith 55 yd. pass from Cam Newton (David Akers kick) NFC 35–31
AFC – Brandon Marshall 47 yd. pass from Andy Dalton (Sebastian Janikowski kick) AFC 38–35
4th quarter
AFC – Vonta Leach 1 yd. run (Sebastian Janikowski kick) AFC 45–35
AFC – Brandon Marshall 3 yd. pass from Andy Dalton (Sebastian Janikowski kick) AFC 52–35
AFC – Derrick Johnson 60 yd. Interception Return (Sebastian Janikowski kick) AFC 59–35
NFC – Larry Fitzgerald 36 yd. pass from Cam Newton (kick short)[5] AFC 59–41

AFC roster

The following players were selected to represent the AFC:[4][6]

Offense

Position Starter(s) Reserve(s) Alternate(s)
Quarterback 12 Tom Brady, New England[e]   7 Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh
17 Philip Rivers, San Diego
14 Andy Dalton, Cincinnati[a]
Running back 27 Ray Rice, Baltimore[b] 32 Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville
23 Arian Foster, Houston[b]
23 Willis McGahee, Denver[a]
24 Ryan Mathews, San Diego[a]
Fullback 44 Vonta Leach, Baltimore
Wide receiver 83 Wes Welker, New England[e]
17 Mike Wallace, Pittsburgh
18 A.J. Green, Cincinnati
19 Brandon Marshall, Miami
83 Vincent Jackson, San Diego[a], 85
Tight end 87 Rob Gronkowski, New England[e] 85 Antonio Gates, San Diego 84 Jermaine Gresham, Cincinnati[a]
Offensive tackle 73 Joe Thomas, Cleveland
77 Jake Long, Miami[b]
60 D'Brickashaw Ferguson, N.Y. Jets 78 Ryan Clady, Denver[a]
Offensive guard 70 Logan Mankins, New England[e]
54 Brian Waters, New England[e]
73 Marshal Yanda, Baltimore 65 Brandon Moore, N.Y. Jets[a]
66 Ben Grubbs, Baltimore[a]
Center 53 Maurkice Pouncey, Pittsburgh[b] 74 Nick Mangold, N.Y. Jets 55 Chris Myers, Houston[a]

Defense

Position Starter(s) Reserve(s) Alternate(s)
Defensive end 93 Dwight Freeney, Indianapolis
93 Andre Carter, New England[b][e]
58 Elvis Dumervil, Denver[c] 94 Antonio Smith, Houston[a]
Defensive tackle 92 Haloti Ngata, Baltimore[b]
75 Vince Wilfork, New England[e]
92 Richard Seymour, Oakland 97 Geno Atkins, Cincinnati[a]
96 Paul Soliai, Miami[a]
Outside linebacker 55 Terrell Suggs, Baltimore[b]
58 Von Miller, Denver
91 Tamba Hali, Kansas City 92 James Harrison, Pittsburgh[a]
Inside linebacker 52 Ray Lewis, Baltimore 56 Derrick Johnson, Kansas City
Cornerback 24 Darrelle Revis, N.Y. Jets
24 Champ Bailey, Denver
24 Johnathan Joseph, Houston
Free safety 20 Ed Reed, Baltimore[b] 32 Eric Weddle, San Diego 25 Ryan Clark, Pittsburgh[a]
Strong safety 43 Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh[b] 20 Brian Dawkins, Denver[a]

Special teams

Position Starter(s) Reserve(s) Alternate(s)
Punter   9 Shane Lechler, Oakland
Placekicker 11 Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland
Kick returner 84 Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh
Special teamer 18 Matthew Slater, New England[e] 24 Montell Owens, Jacksonville[a]
Long snapper 59 Jon Condo, Oakland[d]

NFC roster

The following players were selected to represent the NFC:[4][6]

Offense

Position Starter(s) Reserve(s) Alternate(s)
Quarterback 12 Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay   9 Drew Brees, New Orleans
10 Eli Manning, N.Y. Giants [e]
1 Cam Newton, Carolina[a]
Running back 25 LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia 22 Matt Forté, Chicago
21 Frank Gore, San Francisco[b]
24 Marshawn Lynch, Seattle[a]
Fullback 30 John Kuhn, Green Bay[b] 26 Michael Robinson, Seattle[a]
Wide receiver 81 Calvin Johnson, Detroit[b]
11 Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona
89 Steve Smith, Carolina
85 Greg Jennings, Green Bay
84 Roddy White, Atlanta[a]
Tight end 80 Jimmy Graham, New Orleans 88 Tony Gonzalez, Atlanta
Offensive tackle 71 Jason Peters, Philadelphia
74 Joe Staley, San Francisco
74 Jermon Bushrod, New Orleans
Offensive guard 73 Jahri Evans, New Orleans
77 Carl Nicks, New Orleans
75 Davin Joseph, Tampa Bay
Center 67 Ryan Kalil, Carolina 63 Scott Wells, Green Bay

Defense

Position Starter(s) Reserve(s) Alternate(s)
Defensive end 69 Jared Allen, Minnesota
93 Jason Babin, Philadelphia
90 Jason Pierre-Paul, N.Y. Giants[e] 90 Julius Peppers, Chicago[a]
Defensive tackle 94 Justin Smith, San Francisco
90 Jay Ratliff, Dallas
90 B. J. Raji, Green Bay
Outside linebacker 94 DeMarcus Ware, Dallas
52 Clay Matthews, Green Bay
55 Lance Briggs, Chicago[b] 52 Chad Greenway, Minnesota[a]
Inside linebacker 52 Patrick Willis, San Francisco 54 Brian Urlacher, Chicago[b] 59 London Fletcher, Washington[a]
Cornerback 21 Charles Woodson, Green Bay
22 Carlos Rogers, San Francisco[b]
33 Charles Tillman, Chicago 39 Brandon Browner, Seattle[a]
Free safety 29 Earl Thomas, Seattle 38 Dashon Goldson, San Francisco[b] 31 Kam Chancellor, Seattle[a]
Strong safety 24 Adrian Wilson, Arizona

Special teams

Position Starter(s) Reserve(s) Alternate(s)
Punter   4 Andy Lee, San Francisco
Placekicker   2 David Akers, San Francisco
Kick returner 21 Patrick Peterson, Arizona
Special teamer 21 Corey Graham, Chicago
Long snapper 86 Brian Jennings, San Francisco[d]

Notes:

bold player who participated in game
a Replacement selection due to injury or vacancy
b Injured player; selected but will not play
c Replacement starter; selected as reserve
d "Need player"; named by coach
e Selected but did not play because his team advanced to Super Bowl XLVI

Number of selections per team

American Football Conference
Team Selections
New England Patriots 9
Baltimore Ravens 8
Pittsburgh Steelers 7
Denver Broncos 6
San Diego Chargers 5
Houston Texans 4
New York Jets 4
Oakland Raiders 4
Cincinnati Bengals 4
Miami Dolphins 3
Indianapolis Colts 2
Jacksonville Jaguars 2
Kansas City Chiefs 2
Cleveland Browns 1
Buffalo Bills 0
Tennessee Titans 0
National Football Conference
Team Selections
San Francisco 49ers 9
Green Bay Packers 7
Chicago Bears 6
New Orleans Saints 5
Seattle Seahawks 5
Arizona Cardinals 3
Carolina Panthers 3
Philadelphia Eagles 3
Atlanta Falcons 2
Dallas Cowboys 2
Minnesota Vikings 2
New York Giants 2
Detroit Lions 1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1
Washington Redskins 1
St. Louis Rams 0

Broadcasting

The game was televised nationally by NBC. The telecast of the game garnered a Nielsen rating of 7.9 nationally.[7] While this represented an eight percent drop over the 2011 Pro Bowl ratings,[7] the game was still the second most watched Pro Bowl of the past twelve years.[8] The game drew more viewers than the 2011 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.[8] NBC also broadcast the 2013 game as Super Bowl broadcaster CBS had declined to carry it.

Social media

The NFL loosened its rules which forbid players from communicating via social media during games, by setting up a computer on each sideline to allow players to use Twitter.[9] Washington Redskins linebacker London Fletcher used the occasion to propose a contest among his Twitter followers to predict the game's final score and MVP. However, the NFL had him rescind the offer and he instead gave away a signed jersey instead of cash, presumably on anti-gambling grounds.[10]

Entertainment

The pop band Hot Chelle Rae played during the pregame ceremonies for the game.[11] United States Air Force Technical Sergeant Richard Vazquez sang the national anthem prior to kickoff.[12] Several representatives of the U.S. Armed Forces participated in the coin toss ceremony: Major General Rodger Mathews, U.S. Army Pacific deputy commander; Lieutenant General Thomas L. Conant, U.S. Marine Corps Pacific command deputy commander and USAF Major General Darryll Wong, adjutant general of the Hawaii Air National Guard.[13] The halftime show, "NFL Salute to Service," was a tribute to the United States Armed Forces featuring the U.S. Army Silent Drill Team along with over a thousand service members stationed at bases in Hawaii.[14]

Reactions

Simon Samano of NFL.com wrote about the game, "Players love the trip to Hawaii but don't care for the game itself. They have no desire to risk injury in a 'meaningless' game, which is why they don't play hard, which is how you end up with 59–41 as the final score. It's that lack of effort that caused fans to boo during portions of this year's game."[15] Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers stated on his radio show, "I was just surprised that some of the guys either didn’t want to play or when they were in there didn't put any effort into it."[16] It should be noted that the Pro Bowl has different rules than a regular season NFL game. Blitzing is not allowed and the 4–3 formation must always be used in defensive formations.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, speaking a week after the game, stated that the 2012 Pro Bowl wasn't "the kind of football we want to be demonstrating to our fans, and you heard it from the fans, the fans were actively booing in the stands. ... We are going to either have to improve the quality of what we are doing in the Pro Bowl or consider other changes, or even consider eliminating the game if that is the kind of quality of game we are going to provide."[17]

Philip Rivers also questioned some of the players efforts in the Pro Bowl game. Rivers discussed with Bill Williamson during an interview “In general, maybe the whole week should be up for discussion, but I know there are guys in the game whose contracts may be up and they don’t want to get hurt and things like that. Still, we have to think of the fans and try to stay true to the game and not make a joke or a mockery out of the game."[18]

References

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External links