The 2015 Pro Bowl is here, and we've got all you need to know heading into the game.
It's finally here -- the biggest game of the season, featuring the best talent in the league. It's the one you've all been waiting for ... the 2015 Pro Bowl! Of course, that's how the league would like reality to look, and that's certainly how they try and bill it, but the Pro Bowl has struggled to maintain viewers in recent years.
Whatever the case, the latest iteration of the game continues to evolve as the league tries to find the sweet spot that keeps people interested, and it's set for Sunday night on ESPN. This year, they had two former players serve as captains to draft the respective teams to play in the Pro Bowl, something they started doing last year. That event drew some attention, though it also did as much last year while the game itself saw its ratings drop.
This year, it's Michael Irvin and Cris Carter captaining the two teams. Irvin, naturally, grabbed a whole bunch of Dallas players for his team, including Tony Romo, DeMarco Murray, Tyron Smith and Jason Witten. Carter ended up with some big-name players, including Andrew Luck and J.J. Watt.
Rule changes
There's been plenty of rule tweaks for this year's game. First off: there will be no kickoff, for whatever reason. It might be that the league doesn't want players to get injured in an exhibition game, but whatever the case, the coin toss will determine who gets the ball first, and said ball will be placed at the 25-yard line.
That will occur after scores, but also at the start of each quarter. The league is adding a two-minute warning to the first and third quarters, and the ball will change possession at that point. The thinking here is that two-minute drills are more exciting for fans. Also along that same vein, cover two and press coverage will be allowed in the game.
Outside of that, the rest has to do with the game clock. The clock will stop if the offense does not gain at least one yard in the final two minutes of each quarter, preventing stalling to let the clock run out. The clock will start after an incomplete pass after the signal of a referee outside of the last two minutes of the first half and the last five minutes of the second half. There will also be a 35-second/25-second play clock as opposed to the typical 40-second/25-second play clock.
How to WatchDate: Sunday, Jan. 25Time: 8 p.m. ETLocation: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.TV: ESPNAnnouncers: Mike Tirico, Jon GrudenOnline Streaming: WatchESPN
Here are the rosters for the game:
Team CarterCoachJohn Harbaugh
OffenseQB Andrew LuckQB Drew BreesQB Andy DaltonRB Jamaal CharlesRB Justin ForsettRB Alfred MorrisFB John KuhnWR Antonio BrownWRA.J. GreenWRT.Y. HiltonWR Jordy NelsonTE Martellus BennettTE Greg OlsenOT Joe StaleyOT Duane BrownOT Ryan CladyOG Josh SittonOG Evan MathisOG Mike PounceyOC Maurkice PounceyOC Jason Kelce
DefenseDEJ.J. WattDE Mario WilliamsDE Calais CampbellDT Marcell DareusDT Dontari PoeDT Kyle WilliamsOLB Justin HoustonOLB Connor BarwinOLBTamba HaliILBC.J. MosleyILB Lawrence TimmonsCB Patrick PetersonCB Antonio CromartieCB Aqib TalibCB Sam ShieldsSDonte WhitnerSGlover QuinSAntoine Bethea
Special teamsKCody ParkeyPPat McAfeePR Devin HesterST Justin BethelLS Jon Dorenbos
Team IrvinCoachJason Garrett
OffenseQB Tony RomoQB Matthew StaffordQB Matt RyanRBDeMarco MurrayRB Mark IngramRBC.J. AndersonFB Marcel ReeceWR Odell Beckham Jr.WR Randall CobbWR Emmanuel SandersWR Golden TateTE Jimmy GrahamTE Jason WittenOT Tyron SmithOT Joe ThomasOT Trent WilliamsOG Zach MartinOG Marshal YandaOG Kyle LongOC Travis FrederickOC Nick Mangold
DefenseDE Cameron WakeDE Robert QuinnDE DeMarcus WareDT Aaron DonaldDT Geno AtkinsDT Sheldon RichardsonOLB Von MillerOLB Clay MatthewsOLB Elvis DumervilILB Luke KuechleyILB D'Qwell JacksonCB Joe HadenCB Vontae DavisCB Brent GrimesCB Chris HarrisST.J. WardSEric WeddleSMike Adams
Special teamsKAdam VinatieriPKevin HuberPR Darren SprolesST Darrell StuckeyLSL.P. Ladouceur
Source: http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2015/1/25/7885783/2015-pro-bowl-rosters-rule-changes-tv-coverage-watch-online
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