The NFL’s Pro Bowl has always been one of the most hated moments of any NFL season. The Pro Bowl Weekend is the NFL version of the NBA’s All-Star Game, with fan-voted players competing in an exhibition game. However, unlike the NBA ASG, the Pro Bowl is universally reviled by fans due to one reason: no team is trying.
Watch any Pro Bowl game, and you will see some caricature of what is supposed to be a football game. With most players trying to protect themselves from injury, most of them don’t even try their hardest to put on a show. It’s in stark contrast to the NBA All-Star Game, where recent changes to the format have made for many exciting moments, including the 2022 version.
When the biggest headlines from the Pro Bowl are Mac Jones celebrating a touchdown that doesn’t even count, and Alvin Kamara getting arrested after the game, you start to wonder what’s wrong with the Pro Bowl. Luckily, the NBA has a blueprint for improving the Pro Bowl, and it lies with the All-Star Game format.
The NBA All-Star Game idea that will revive NFL’s horrid Pro Bowl format
The current NBA All-Star format goes a little something like this: teams play your standard, 4-quarter game, with 12 minutes per quarter. However, there’s a twist. The winning team of each quarter will win $100,000 that they will donate to a certain charity. In the event of a tie, teams split the $100,000 for their charities. The score is then reset back to zero, and the next quarter starts.
This format goes on for the first three quarters. For the fourth quarter, the cumulative score through three quarters is taken for each team. They will play an untimed quarter with a set Final Target Score. The final target score is the leading team’s cumulative score, plus 24 (representing Kobe Bryant’s number). Whoever reaches that final score will get an additional $150,000 donation to their charity.
The result of this new format is a much more exciting All-Star Game to watch for NBA fans. While players are still decidedly not giving it their all to not risk injury, the new format adds more tangible stakes to the game. This is especially apparent in the fourth quarter, since having a clear goal to go for adds extra tension to the game.
Already, there are already fans of this All-Star format in the NFL. Tyler Lockett, the Seattle Seahawks wide receiver, tweeted out during the game that the NFL should think about adopting the NBA’s charity donation per quarter scheme.
I think it’d be dope if the NFL pro bowl implemented the same thing as NBA all star game! 2 charities will be awarded 100k each quarter based off who wins the quarter
— Tyler Lockett (@TDLockett12) February 21, 2022
Other parts of the NBA’s All-Star format will be tougher to adopt to the Pro Bowl. The Elam ending of having a set goal to win the game doesn’t quite work in gridiron football, since the scoring system is unique. Still, the NFL should at least entertain the idea of making the charity change in their Pro Bowl. It’s good PR for them, either way.
Is this a guarantee that NFL players will start taking more seriously? No, absolutely not. Despite these changes to the NBA All-Star Game, the first three quarters of the game are still a glorified practice session for both teams. However, unlike the previous years: there’s no Stephen Curry literally planking on the floor while Antetokounmpo is dunking. Both teams are at least trying to some degree.
Also, gridiron football is a ridiculously physical sport. If players exert even just 25% of their effort, they open themselves up to injury. At the end of the day, their biggest priority is their health.
Who knows, though? At this point, any change to the Pro Bowl will be welcomed wholeheartedly by NFL fans. Maybe this change will be the key to making the Pro Bowl great again.
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