The polls are open!
Fans can begin voting to select players for the 2014 Pro Bowl, presented by McDonald's, the NFL announced Sunday. Voting is available online and on web-enabled mobile phones by going to NFL.com/probowl/ballot.
Balloting will conclude on Thursday, Dec. 26. The Pro Bowl players will be announced in early January on NFL Network's "NFL Total Access."
Players later will be assigned to teams through the first Pro Bowl Draft during the week leading up to the game, which will also air on NFL Network.
The 2014 Pro Bowl will be played on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2014 and televised live on NBC at 7 p.m. ET from Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. Fans may purchase game tickets starting next month at NFL.com/probowl.
For the first time, the Pro Bowl will be "unconferenced."
Gone is the familiar AFC vs. NFC matchup that has existed since 1971. Instead, players will be selected without regard to conference in voting by fans, coaches and players. For example, the top six quarterbacks following voting will earn distinction as All-Stars, regardless of how many are from AFC or NFC teams.
Then, the NFL's All-Stars will be realigned through a fantasy football-style draft.
Four leading vote getters -- comprised of two offensive and two defensive player captains -- will be joined by two NFL.com fantasy football champions to draft players. One of these champions will earn their spot as part of Lenovo's Fantasy Coach of the Year program, which provides NFL.com fans a chance to be rewarded for their fantasy football skills. The other champion can compete for a Pro Bowl role by playing at NFL.com/fantasy.
The fantasy football champions will have Hall of Fame help. Pro Football Hall of Famers Jerry Rice (@JerryRice) and Deion Sanders (@DeionSanders) will serve as alumni team captains, assisting the Pro Bowl team captains and fantasy football champions in the draft process.
NFL players and coaches will cast their votes on Dec. 23 through Dec. 26. The NFL is the only sports league that combines voting by fans, coaches and players to determine its all-star teams. It was the first professional sports league to offer online all-star voting in 1995.
Quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Tom Brady were the top two vote-getters last year, while running backs Arian Foster and Adrian Peterson and quarterback Aaron Rodgers rounded out the top five.
The following is a breakdown of positions and the corresponding numbers of players who will be selected (88 total):