Buccaneers fans should pose lots of angry questions after seeing Leonard Fournette disrespected by the Pro Bowl.
The Pro Bowl is one of the worst All-Star institutions in sports. Not only is the product terrible, but the entire process is flawed from top to bottom. Allowing for a fan vote in anything that has to do with grading player performances is ludicrous, especially when this “honor” impacts player salaries.
The Buccaneers have been on the losing end of this popularity contest for decades, and it is time for a full revamping of the system to ensure a fair evaluation of players moving forward.
Nowhere is this abject failure more on display than with Leonard Fournette not making the Pro Bowl this season. More than anything, Alvin Kamara and James Conner earning the recognition is where the heart of the problem lies.
Leonard Fournette: 14 games | 812 rushing yards | 4.5 yards per carry | 69 receptions | 454 receiving yards | 10 total touchdowns
James Conner: 14 games | 700 rushing yards | 3.7 yards per carry | 31 receptions | 334 receiving yards | 16 total touchdowns
Alvin Kamara: 10 games | 668 rushing yards | 3.6 yards per carry | 38 receptions | 348 receiving yards | 8 total touchdowns
Just looking at the stats, one has to wonder how the committee ever put Conner and Kamara in the Pro Bowl over Fournette. The fact that each of these players can lose out to Fournette in almost every major category other than touchdowns for Conner and still make it in proves how broken the system is.
Kamara didn’t even make it on the field for as many games as either counterpart. Is the committee even watching games, or are we simply nominating based on names?
There is no justification for Kamara making it in, and Conner’s argument over Fournette’s weak at best.
Unfortuately for Fournette, he actually has teammates that are relevant on the offensive side of the ball that make it hard to stand out. The Saints have no offense without Kamara, but that alone is not justification for simply putting him in with stats that are reminiscent of Peyton Barber’s during his time in Tampa.
Now, Fournette loses out on extra money and the recognition that he deserves, all because the Pro Bowl is clearly based on nothing more than Twitter highlights.
Fournette missing out is beyond inexcusable, and the NFL needs to come up with a better way to make this game work going forward, because the current system clearly isn’t working.
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