Pro Bowl Draft Outline
Front office
Alumni Captains: Deion Sanders and Jerry Rice. The alumni captain has final say in the draft.
Offensive Captains: Drew Brees and Jamaal Charles
Defensive Captains: J.J. Watt and Robert Quinn
Fantasy Winner: Two fans
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Captains
The top two offensive vote-getters and the top two defensive vote-getters will be appointed as captains. Captain groups will be:
Highest offensive vote-getter and second-highest defensive vote-getter: Drew Brees (Saints) and Robert Quinn (Rams).
Highest defensive vote-getter and second-highest offensive vote-getter: J.J. Watt (Texans) and Jamaal Charles (Chiefs).
Captains must be from teams that are nonconference championship-game participants (28 teams).
Captains will be determined by the Tuesday following the divisional playoff games (at the latest).
Coin toss
On Tuesday, Jan. 21, there will be a coin toss at the Pro Bowl press conference. The winner will choose between the captain group or first pick in the Tuesday and Wednesday drafts. If the winner of the coin flip chooses a captain group, the loser will be assigned the other captain group and have first pick in the Tuesday and Wednesday drafts. If the winner of the coin flip chooses first pick in the Tuesday and Wednesday drafts, the loser will pick a captain group.
Team rosters
Offense: Each Pro Bowl team must have 21 players on offense in the following positions:
» Four wide receivers
» Three tackles
» Three guards
» Two centers
» Two tight ends
» Three quarterbacks
» Three running backs
» One fullback
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Defense: Each Pro Bowl team must have 18 players on defense in the following positions:
» Three defensive ends
» Three interior linemen
» Three outside linebackers
» Two inside/middle linebackers
» Four cornerbacks
» Three safeties
Special Teams: Each Pro Bowl team must have five players on special teams in the following positions:
Draft eligible players
There are 88 players that participate in the Pro Bowl. Of those 88, 82 players are draft eligible. Four of the 88 players will be captains as described above. Two of the 88 players are appointed by coaches because they are "need" players (e.g., long snapper) and therefore not drafted. A maximum of 64 players will be drafted. A minimum of 18 players will be assigned (one per position).
Once a team fills its roster limit for a position, the other team is assigned the remaining players at that position. Assignments do not count as picks. For example, if Team Sanders has only picked two wide receivers when Team Rice picks its fourth wide receivers, the remaining two wide receivers will be assigned to Team Sanders and Team Sanders will have the next pick in the draft.
This draft will be taped Tuesday, Jan. 21, from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. and shown the same day on NFL Network. Picks will be a maximum of 30 seconds.
There will be 22 players -- 11 per team -- drafted or assigned in segments from the following position groups in this order:
- Three interior linemen
- Three guards
- Two centers
- One fullback, one punter and one special teamer (e.g. coverage player)
Picks are in alternating order. There will be six players assigned. There will be 16 actual selections. After Tuesday, each team will have 14 players (28 total players) made up of 11 draft/assigned during Tuesday's draft, one "need" player and two captains.
On Wednesday, players selected/assigned Tuesday will be announced and walk the red carpet at the outset of the show. All players will be given a Pro Bowl practice jersey. The remaining players will be drafted in a three-hour live show on NFL Network on Jan. 22. Two minutes per pick must be used.
Alternating order
60 players, 30 per team, will be drafted or assigned from the following position groups:
» Four wide receivers
» Three tackles
» Two tight ends
» Three quarterbacks
» Three running backs
» Three outside linebackers
» Two inside/middle linebackers
» Four cornerbacks
» Three safeties
» Three defensive ends
» One placekicker
» One returner
Notes
Four of the players above will be captains and already on a team prior to the Wednesday draft.
There will be a minimum of 12 players assigned. There will be a maximum of 48 players drafted.
Once each team has two quarterbacks on its roster, they may not take a third quarterback until the last round of the draft.
At the conclusion of the draft, the team that chooses second may make one trade. Players must be the same position (e.g., wide receiver for wide receiver). This must only involve players selected beyond the fifth round. The trade may not be for a quarterback. If the team that chose second decides to make a trade, the trade is mandatory.
