What kind of year would it be without Chargers fans up in arms about some player being snubbed by the Pro Bowl selections? Last year it was Philip Rivers. This year: Vincent Jackson. Chargers fans are not alone in their bewilderment.
In the Chargers Pro Bowl Discussion thread, a rather heated debate erupted about whether or not Brandon Marshall deserves to not only be selected to the Pro Bowl over Vincent Jackson, but whether or not he belongs there in the first place.
Read on to see how the various Wide Receivers stack up.
Let's look at the numbers for the four Wide Receivers selected to the Pro Bowl (ordered by their Pro Bowl ranking):
Player | Receptions | Yards | Yards per Rec | TD | TD % | First Downs | First Down % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Andre Johnson | 95 | 1504 | 15.8 | 9 | 9.47% | 65 | 68.42% |
Reggie Wayne | 95 | 1243 | 13.1 | 10 | 10.52% | 71 | 74.74% |
Brandon Marshall | 101 | 1120 | 11.1 | 10 | 9.90% | 56 | 55.45% |
Wes Welker | 122 | 1336 | 11.0 | 4 | 3.28% | 70 | 57.38% |
Vincent Jackson | 68 | 1167 | 17.2 | 9 | 13.24% | 58 | 85.29% |
Going by just stats alone, it's clear that Vincent Jackson is having a stellar year and is performing above and beyond the rest of the field; his efficiency is unmatched.
So why the snub? Is it due to lack of receptions? All 4 Pro Bowl Wide Receivers have more than 90 receptions, to Jackson's 68 receptions. It's the only logical explanation I could garner.
Lack of receptions or not, there's no denying the production coming out of Vincent Jackson. He absolutely deserves to be in the Pro Bowl over Brandon Marshall.
If it were up to me, and going by stats alone, Vincent Jackson and Reggie Wayne should be the starters.
[EDIT]: Originally I had made the case to drop Wes Welker from the Pro Bowl team based solely on stats, but there's an inherent danger on relying solely on stats. Upon further review and convincing otherwise, I was shown the light and have seen Welker's value as a receiver outside just his stats. I blame it not so much on my Chargers fanboyism, but more on my ignorance of the Patriots and paying attention to Welker's contributions this year. I stand corrected, mea culpa.
But, all this worrying about which Chargers were snubbed will all be for naught since they won't be able to participate in the Pro Bowl this year anyway since they'll be preparing for the big game the following week. Right?
Player | Team | DYAR |
---|---|---|
V. Jackson | SD | 458 |
W. Welker | NE | 413 |
R. Wayne | IND | 389 |
R. Moss | NE | 346 |
H. Ward | PIT | 286 |
S. Holmes | PIT | 271 |
A. Johnson | HOU | 267 |
C. Ochocinco | CIN | 243 |
A. Collie | IND | 217 |
M. Wallace | PIT | 203 |
M. Floyd | SD | 193 |
K. Walter | HOU | 187 |
D. Mason | BAL | 186 |
B. Marshall | DEN | 181 |
J. Cotchery | NYJ | 158 |
K. Washington | BAL | 158 |
B. Hartline | MIA | 143 |
G. Camarillo | MIA | 131 |
K. Britt | TEN | 129 |
M. Sims-Walker | JAC | 129 |