In an earlier post, we discussed the ways fantasy football could help you make informed (and not knee-jerk) choices for the offensive teams for this year’s Pro Bowl. Now, it’s time to discuss the rest of the roster.
At this point, it would be useful to have access to a fantasy football league that uses individual defensive players, because it does a good job of showing you which players are actually getting work done in a typical game and which ones are simply taking advantage of their past glory to get camera time now.
Defensive end (3 players per conference). According to the ESPN IDP league I consulted, your AFC choices should be Jason Babin (116 points), Robert Mathis (113) and Dave Ball (98). In the NFC, it’s Justin Tuck (156), Osi Umeniyora (135) and Trent Cole (133).
Defensive tackle (3). AFC: Haloti Ngata (115), Kyle Williams (108) and Ahtyba Rubin (108). NFC: Ndamukong Suh (126), Barry Cofield (87) and Darnell Dockett (79).
Outside linebacker (3). AFC: James Harrison (213), Cameron Wake (142) and Shaun Phillips (140). NFC: James Anderson (201), Chad Greenway (190) and Clay Matthews (158).
Inside linebacker (2). AFC: Jerod Mayo (212) and Lawrence Timmons (208). NFC: Patrick Willis (196) and London Fletcher (185).
Cornerback (3). AFC: Bryant McFadden (159), Cortland Finnegan (148) and Kelvin Hayden (136). NFC: DeAngelo Hall (187), Charles Woodson (162) and Terrell Thomas (159).
Strong safety (1). Donte Whitner (159) and LaRon Landry (184).
Free safety (1). T.J. Ward (172) and Kerry Rhodes (155).
Kicker (1): Sebastian Janikowski (89) and Matt Bryant (89).
Punter (1): For this category, we don’t even need fantasy football. We can go straight to NFL.com’s leader page. The current leaders by yards per punt are Shane Lechler (49) and Mat BcBriar (48.2).
Kick returner (1): Again, we can consult NFL.com. The leaders by total return yards are Brad Smith (992) and Stefan Logan (1,123).
Special teams player (1): OK, here’s where the People’s Pigskin can’t really help you. Feel free to flip a coin or just vote for the player from your favorite team.
By using fantasy football as your guide, you can help keep the Pro Bowl from being a popularity contest or a referendum on which players are getting plenty of air time from the TV folks. You can make the Pro Bowl something that players earn.
We’ll be back with the weekly predictions.
The People's Pigskin 
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