At 2:16 p.m. on Tuesday, the Steelers announced some big news. Russell Wilson, whose hot start had Pittsburgh looking like a serious threat in the AFC early in the year, had earned a spot in the Pro Bowl, despite having missed the first six games of the season and despite having lost four straight to close out the regular season.
That losing streak took some bloom off Wilson’s rose, but not enough to keep him out of what remains of the NFL’s annual All-Star game—the Pro Bowl, which is now better known as the Pro Bowl Games because there isn’t an actual Pro Bowl game played anymore.
On Tuesday, about 15 minutes after Patriots rookie Drake Maye had been named as replacement for Lamar Jackson in the 2025 Pro Bowl Games, the Steelers announced that Wilson was named a replacement for Josh Allen. Both Jackson and Allen cited injuries as reasons for missing the festivities.
Former Texans star JJ Watt, himself a five-time Pro Bowl edge, openly wondered what, exactly, is going on.
Joe Burrow of the Bengals remains a Pro Bowler, but the fact that Maye—who was 3-9 in 12 starts and threw 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions—earned a spot is pretty bizarre. The same can be said for Wilson, who was 6-5 as a starter this season and notched a rating of 95.6, just 14th in the NFL.
On Twitter/X, less than two hours after the Wilson announcement, Watt wrote, “When you get 5 alternates deep, just call it the Participation Bowl.”
Oof.
While that's not necessarily a nice thing to say about the Pro Bowl .. er, Pro Bowl Games ... Watt's message was met with a collective thumbs-up.
As former NFL quarterback and ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky wrote, "Wow wow wow."
And WFAN radio host Keith MacPherson added, "Its flag football and gym games."
They were not alone in their approval of Watt's sentiment.
