The feeling that I’ve gotten from Shedeur Sanders and the fandom or hatred is that there is no in-between. You have either got to love or hate the guy. I have very rarely found someone online with an opinion somewhere in the middle. That’s what I’m here for…
Why is Shedeur getting in a good thing?
It is going to be a shock to absolutely no one when I tell you that, since the change of the Pro Bowl format, the viewership numbers have dropped significantly. They have had a year-over-year decline, with viewership dropping 19% between 2024 and 2025.
The viewership is falling, so what do you do to rectify it?
You get young and publicly interesting figures to participate in the event. Shedeur checks both of those boxes. People seem to forget that sports are an entertainment industry and are focused on generating viewership numbers that they can then sell to advertisers. Shedeur does just that; he will almost certainly bring eyes to the Pro Bowl that would have been elsewhere this weekend.
I think another thing is true as well. The people who are complaining about Shedeur getting in probably were not turning on the TV this weekend with the Pro Bowl or Pro Bowl Games on their viewing list. So, in all likelihood, you aren’t losing viewership because of this move upsetting people and causing them to change what they are watching. I mean, the term hate-watch has become increasingly more popular over the last couple of years. It happens when people really don’t like a player and turn on their games in hopes that they fail. So, really, the NFL only stands to gain from the decision.
Also, let’s not pretend like this should be something to get up in arms about anyway. Oh no, we’ve let an average rookie quarterback infiltrate our exhibition flag football game that Peyton and Eli Manning coach. How will the league’s image ever recover?
What does Shedeur getting in mean?
It means that we should finally be able to treat the declining product that is the Pro Bowl for what it is. It is an exhibition and a showcase, not an accolade. I would like to preface this argument by saying I believe this to be true across leagues, but at least the others actually play their sport. I get that the NBA has modified the rules for its All-Star Game, but they still play the sport at its core. The NFL fundamentally changed the game that they play for their showcase game.
What I mean by this is that for decades, the Pro Bowl, in the same way as the NBA and MLB All-Star appearances, has been considered an accolade. But they’ve shown you what it is and has been for a while across leagues, entertainment, and eyeballs. But for some reason, we don’t acknowledge it as a popularity contest and instead treat it as a career-defining accomplishment.
My case study for this: Matthew Stafford
Why Stafford? Because for the majority of his career, he was stuck in what many believed to be a place that careers go to die, Detroit. Stafford made one Pro Bowl during his time in Detroit back in 2014. The only problem with that is that in the 3 seasons that followed for Stafford, he put up better seasons than he did in 2014, but did not receive the nod a single time over the next 3 years. But since his time in Los Angeles, he has received 2 Pro Bowl nods. An obvious up tick, right? Even Los Angeles wasn’t enough to make him a household name worthy of the Pro Bowl, though. In 2021, a season that is clearly his second-best in a Rams uniform, he did not get a Pro Bowl nod. But it can’t be that egregious, right? I’ll let you be the judge with a blind resume test. One will be Stafford’s 2021 season, and the other will be Stafford’s Pro Bowl season in 2023.
Season A: 9-6 record, 62.6% completion percentage, 3,965 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions.
Season B: 12-5 record, 67.2% completion percentage, 4,886 yards, 41 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions
This one is a fun bonus season
Season C: 10-6 record, 63.5% completion percentage, 5,038 yards, 41 touchdowns, and 16 interceptions
If you guessed that of those three options, Season A is the only Pro Bowl season of the three, you would be correct. Season B was Stafford’s first year in Los Angeles, a season in which he won the Super Bowl, and finally, Season C was in 2011 when Stafford was in Detroit and won Comeback Player of the Year.      Â
Now, this wasn’t meant to be a piece on Matthew Stafford, and whether he is underrated or not. But he illustrates the point that I am making so well. He is a guy who is top 10 in passing yards and passing touchdowns all-time in the NFL and has made 3 Pro Bowls, with 2 of them coming in seasons that were not close to his best.
Why it bothers me so much
When they take the stage on August 8th to enshrine the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame Class, on the list of accomplishments that they will read off for the players will include Pro Bowls. When it feels like, at best, the accomplishment is awarded more arbitrarily than anything else. This isn’t just an NFL thing, either; the MLB had Jacob Misiorowski in the All-Star game last year because he was popular, young, and would probably bring some eyes to the game.
These inclusions do not bother me, just because these guys were included. In fact, I like the fact that guys like Shedeur Sanders and Jacob Misiorowski. They are perfect to bring fan interest to what is an exhibition game built to entertain fans. I only draw issues when we use the Pro Bowl and All-Star games to define and strengthen career resumes instead of looking at them for what they are. Â Â Â
