’Tis the Season for Pro Bowl Snubs

The Indianapolis Colts had their share of disgruntled players who deserved to be selected for the annual honor.

INDIANAPOLIS — Call it the annual December ‘dis,’ when NFL players have reason to vent about being disrespected when their name is excluded from the Pro Bowl rosters.

The Indianapolis Colts had three players named on Monday in offensive left guard Quenton Nelson, weakside linebacker Darius Leonard, and center Ryan Kelly. And they had at least three others who deserved inclusion in defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, nickel cornerback Kenny Moore II, and safety George Odum for special teams. Third-year offensive right tackle Braden Smith and rookie kicker Rodrigo Blankenship have also played well enough to be worthy.

Colts special teams coach Bubba Ventrone is a former NFL special-teams player who understands why this happens. He was asked Tuesday about his reaction to Odum, who leads the NFL with 18 special-teams tackles, being passed over for New England’s Matthew Slater, who was honored for a record ninth time despite having just five tackles.

“The Pro Bowl is – it is what it is,” Ventrone said. “I’ll say this, for (Odum) to be able to lead the league in special-teams tackles by as many as he does – I think he leads the league by six tackles and to not get elected in is kind of puzzling. He should without a doubt be All-Pro. He’s contributed a lot to our unit and our unit has contributed to a lot of wins for this team. It’s a testament to him for his effort. George (Odum) is a team player, too. He does everything that we ask him to do for the team. He is a selfless player, plays with injury and he has done a good job. He is a fighter.

“Yeah, of course I would have liked for him to get selected for himself and to represent his teammates. I don’t even know why we vote for the Pro Bowl at times. I feel like the All-Pro is more deserving. It feels like a popularity contest at times, but it is what it is.”

Popularity contest is the astute description. The Pro Bowl is voted upon by fans, coaches, and players. That tends to take into consideration the reputation of an established player as opposed to the statistics for the current season.

The Associated Press All-Pro honor is voted on by the media and is considered to have more merit.

Odum was unfairly snubbed, and understandably upset.

Im lost for words right now.

— George Odum (@GeorgeOdum) December 22, 2020

But the biggest name overlooked on the Colts roster was Buckner, who had superior numbers the three players selected. Buckner was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week on Wednesday after having a career-high three sacks in Sunday’s 27-20 home win over the Houston Texans.

DeForest Buckner leads the Colts with 24 quarterback hits :: Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports

Buckner has 45 total tackles (based on NFL.com numbers taken from official gamebooks), 7.5 sacks, 8 tackles for loss, 24 quarterback hits, 1 pass breakup, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, and 1 safety.

The players selected instead were Kansas City’s Chris Jones, Pittsburgh’s Cameron Heyward, and Baltimore’s Calais Campbell. Jones has 35 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, 2 for loss, 24 quarterback hits, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 safety. Heyward has 44 total tackles, 3 sacks, 5 tackles for loss, 17 quarterback hits, 3 pass breakups, 1 interception. Campbell has 25 total tackles, 4 sacks, 5 tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hits, and six pass breakups.

Simple math, huh? Buckner has larger numbers. He responded with an amusing reaction to the Pro Bowl announcement.

I never was the popular kid 🤷🏾‍♂️

— DeForest Buckner (@DeForestBuckner) December 22, 2020

It’s worth noting the Pro Bowl game between AFC and NFL All-Star squads has been canceled this postseason due to COVID-19 concerns. But snubbed players still have reason to complain. And they’re not the only ones.

Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus was asked Tuesday about his reaction to Buckner being snubbed.

“I would say that it happens,” Eberflus said. “I’ve had guys in the past not make it and then I’ve also had guys not make the – like Darius (in 2018). I had another linebacker at a previous stop that didn’t make the Pro Bowl but made the All-Pro team which is voted on by y’all, the media and guys that are selected to get the vote, to vote on the All-Pro team. That’s more of a prestigious honor and I certainly think (Buckner will) probably get that I would imagine because he is one of the best defensive linemen in football. I’m looking forward to that, and if he doesn’t get it, he doesn’t get it, but I think he’s certainly worthy of that.”

Leonard actually led the NFL in tackles as a rookie in 2018 when snubbed for the Pro Bowl. “The Maniac” has used that as motivation ever since. He was voted an All-Pro in each of his first two seasons, and is expected to make it three in a row this year, and was named to the Pro Bowl the past two years.

Smith, who has transitioned from college guard to become a solid NFL offensive right tackle, has actually received the highest Pro Football Focus grades of any Colts offensive lineman, including Nelson and Kelly. The third-year pro was asked Tuesday if he cared about not making the Pro Bowl.

“Just move on to the next day,” he said. “At the end of the day, it’s not about getting the personal accolades. It’s always nice to have that, but at the end of the day our goal is to win a Super Bowl and that’s a team thing. That’s a great thing about what football is, it’s a team sport. You just have to have everybody on the same boat, working toward their goal to do their part to help the team win games.”

Smith added that he values more how much the Colts appreciate him. Tenth-year offensive left tackle Anthony Castonzo made a public Pro Bowl pitch on Smith’s behalf. Head coach Frank Reich said he considers Smith one of the NFL’s best offensive right tackles.

Smith couldn’t be more correct. That kind of respect in his own locker room means more than his popularity on Pro Bowl ballots.