Earlier this week, it was reported that Teddy Bridgewater and Jameis Winston will be heading to the 2016 NFL Pro Bowl for the first time in their respective careers. While that’s great for these two young quarterbacks, taking a look at some of the numbers, a few more deserving players were left out to dry.
First, let’s take a look at the numbers for both Bridgewater and Winston. Bridgewater threw for 3,231 yards, 14 touchdowns, nine interceptions and finished with a passer rating of 88.7. Winston threw for more yards (4,042), more touchdowns (22), more interceptions (15), which led to a lower passer rating (84.2).
None of these numbers are mind boggling, but when you have to replace players like Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisberger, Cam Newton, Carson Palmer and Tom Brady you’re not going to have the top-tier players in terms of production.
Taking a look around the league, one could make the argument that there were three more deserving players that should be in Hawaii this weekend.
Kirk Cousins finished the season with 4,166 yards, 29 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and finished with a passer rating of 101.6. It doesn’t take much to notice that he was more productive than both Bridgewater and Winston. What makes Cousins’ numbers more impressive is the fact that over the season’s final ten games, he finished with a passer rating of 118.6 and only threw three interceptions in that span.
Based on the numbers, Cousins deserves the Pro Bowl nod over both Bridgewater and Winston.
Another quarterback that should have received the nod to head to Hawaii is the gunslinger from Jacksonville, Blake Bortles. The 23-year-old threw for 35 touchdowns, good for second best in the league trailing only Brady’s 36. Bortles passed for 4,428 yards and finished with a passer rating of 88.2. His numbers are greatly improved compared to the ones he put up as a rookie a year ago.
The one knock on him would be the fact that he did throw a league-high 18 interceptions, but those happen when you chuck up the ball 606 times in 16 games. Still, he should be on Team Irvin over Bridgewater or Winston.
One could even make the case for Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler. He had one of, if not his best season as a pro as he finished the season with 3,659 yards, 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, and a passer rating of 92.3, which was good for a career-high. His 11 picks were also a career-low for seasons that he played at least 10 games.
Cutler’s numbers don’t jump off the page, but he did throw more touchdowns than Bridgewater and his passer rating was more than both Bridgewater and Winston.
What makes his numbers impressive is the fact that he threw to a ragtag bunch as injuries sidelined his top targets in Alshon Jeffery, Matt Forte and Martellus Bennett. Cutler had to work with a group of guys that nobody outside the city of Chicago could name like Josh Bellamy and Cameron Meredith.
Something that doesn’t show up on that stat sheet but proves Cutler’s resiliency is the fact that he was dealing with family issues throughout the end of the season, but he did not allow it to affect his game. Cutler’s brother-in-law was first reported missing on Nov. 27 and was found dead on Dec. 10.
All three of these quarterbacks deserve to be in the Pro Bowl more than Bridgewater and Winston. It’s just a shame that selections are more about which players are more popular rather than selecting players solely based off their performance throughout the season.
Needless to say, the Pro Bowl selection process is a complete and utter joke.
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