5 Vikings players make Pro Bowl roster, along with 9 alternates
MINNEAPOLIS -- The NFL has released Pro Bowl Game rosters, and the Vikings are well represented by five players who, at this point, you might well expect to see.
Quarterback Kirk Cousins, wide receiver Justin Jefferson, tight end T.J. Hockenson, linebacker Za'Darius Smith, and long snapper Andrew DePaola are all going. Of those, Jefferson, Smith and DePaola were named starters.
The Vikings also have nine alternates in the mix:
- RB Dalvin Cook
- FB C.J. Ham
- OLB Danielle Hunter
- RS Kene Nwangwu
- T Christian Darrisaw
- C Garrett Bradbury
- S Harrison Smith
- ST Kris Boyd
- LB Eric Kendricks
The NFL-leading Philadelphia Eagles had a league-best eight players, including quarterback Jalen Hurts, selected for the first Pro Bowl Games.
The league announced rosters for the NFC and AFC on Wednesday. Players from both conferences will compete in weeklong skills competitions culminated with a flag football game on Sunday, February 5, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. The NFL eliminated its full-contact all-star game in September.
Kansas City and Dallas each had seven players chosen for the Games. San Francisco and Baltimore are next with six. Only two teams — Jacksonville and Chicago — aren't represented on the initial rosters.
The roster selections were determined by the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches.
Each group's vote counted one-third toward determining the teams. The NFL is the only sports league that combines voting by fans, coaches and players to determine its all-stars. It was also the first professional sports league to offer online all-star voting in 1995.
The AFC and NFC will start off with five skills competitions on Feb. 2. On Sunday, there will be three flag football games and three additional skills competitions between the two conferences.
The winner of each skills competition earns three points for his conference. There are eight total skills competitions worth a total of 24 available points.
The winner of each of the first two flag games earns six points for his conference. The first two flag games are worth a total of 12 available points.
Points from the eight skills competitions and first two flag games are added together and that will be the score at the beginning of the third and final flag game. The third flag game will determine the overall winner of the Pro Bowl Games.
The flag games will feature a traditional AFC vs. NFC matchup with 27 skill position players available from the full roster for each conference.
Each team will also have one center available on their roster. The game will be played 7 on 7.
Each game will be 20 minutes in length, with two, 10-minute halves on a 50-yard field with two 10-yard end zones.
Touchdowns are worth six points. There are two different options for post-touchdown conversions: 1-point conversion from the 3-yard line and 2-point conversion from the 10-yard line. Safeties and returned 1- or 2-point conversion attempts are worth 2 points.
