Here is the NFC Pro Bowl roster. Starters are listed in bold.

OFFENSE

QB: Kurt Warner, Cardinals; Drew Brees, Saints; Eli Manning, Giants
RB: Adrian Peterson, Vikings; Michael Turner, Falcons; Clinton Portis, Redskins
FB: Mike Sellers, Redskins
WR: Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals; Anquan Boldin, Cardinals; Steve Smith, Panthers; Roddy White, Falcons,
TE: Jason Witten, Cowboys; Chris Cooley, Redskins
T: Jordan Gross, Panthers; Walter Jones, Seahawks; Chris Samuels, Redskins
G: Chris Snee, Giants; Steve Hutchinson, Vikings; Leonard Davis, Cowboys
C: Andre Gurode, Cowboys; Shaun O’Hara, Giants

DEFENSE

DE: Justin Tuck, Giants; Julius Peppers, Panthers; Jared Allen, Vikings
DT: Kevin Williams, Vikings; Jay Ratliff, Cowboys; Pat Williams, Vikings
OLB: DeMarcus Ware, Cowboys; Lance Briggs, Bears; Derrick Brooks, Buccaneers
MLB: Patrick Willis, 49ers; Jon Beason, Panthers
CB: Charles Woodson, Packers; Antoine Winfield, Vikings; Asante Samuel, Eagles
S: Nick Collins, Packers; Adrian Wilson, Cardinals; Brian Dawkins, Eagles

SPECIAL TEAMS

K: John Carney, Giants
P: Jeff Feagles, Giants
KR: Clifton Smith, Buccaneers
ST: Sean Morey, Cardinals

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2009 NFC Pro Bowl Roster

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

According to multiple sources within the Dallas Cowboys organization this week, receiver Terrell Owens has expressed resentment toward quarterback Tony Romo because he’s jealous of Tony’s relationship with tight end Jason Witten. T.O. thinks Tony and Jason hold private meetings and create plays without including him. An anonymous Cowboys player weighed-in:

“He’s insecure about it. The thing that bothers me more than anything about this problem is that it’s always something with him — San Fran, Philly and here; always something. And he brings other people into it. You know, he talks to Sam Hurd and Roy Williams, who just got here and doesn’t really know these guys. T.O. talks to him and so now he probably thinks Witten politics with Tony for the ball. That’s so far from the truth. You think Tony is throwing to him because that’s his buddy? His best buddy is Bobby Carpenter, and that’s not helping him too much. It’s crazy to think that, and I hate that he acts that way.”

T.O. has resorted to private meetings between his fellow receivers and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett. He won’t talk to Tony because he “seldom talks to Romo, unless it’s on the football field.” Of course, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and head coach Wade Phillips say there is no such “Terrellnoia.” But they’re just trying to keep the whole operation from imploding, which it will most likely do Sunday night if the Cowboys lose to the N.Y. Giants.

What needs to happen for Terrell Owens to be happy? The team needs to revolve around him. He needs to have the most catches (which he currently does not — Jason Witten does) and he needs to be the focal point of not just the offense, but the entire organization. A distant second is winning. If Terrell Owens were having a lot of personal success (leading the team in catches, for instance), I don’t really think he would care if the team were losing games. He says it’s all about winning, but his behavior doesn’t reflect that.

The entirely dysfunctional Cowboys amuse me. This is not a team that has adopted the true team concept and there is no way they’re winning a championship with this group of personalities. Nobody can talk to anybody. Private meetings. He said this and he said that. I believe it starts from the top and trickles down. How many other owners do you see giving postgame quotes every week? Let the coaches and players handle that. Jerry Jones is like a puppet master. So with all that money spent and the tremendous publicity and expectations this season, it’s entirely possible the Cowboys will lose all of their remaining games against the Giants, Ravens and Eagles.

Source: ESPN.com, Photo: Newscom

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Terrell Owens is Angry and Jealous

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees received 951,246 votes to lead all NFL All-Stars in fan balloting for the 2009 NFL Pro Bowl. N.Y. Jets quarterback Brett Favre (880,833 votes) ranks second overall, while N.Y. Giants quarterback Eli Manning (821,852 votes), Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis (767,817 votes) and Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner (673,710 votes) round out the top-five. Here is the list of Top-Ten vote-getters for the 2009 National Football League Pro Bowl:

1. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
2. Brett Favre, N.Y. Jets
3. Eli Manning, N.Y. Giants
4. Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins
5. Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals
6. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
7. Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
8. Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
9. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
10. Chris Cooley, Washington Redskins

The Top-Five rookie vote-getters were Chris Johnson (Tennessee Titans), Matt Ryan (Atlanta Falcons), Matt Forté (Chicago Bears), Chris Horton (Washington Redskins), and Steve Slaton (Houston Texans).

The teams will be announced at 4 p.m. (ET) Tuesday, December 16 on a special NFL Total Access 2009 NFL Pro Bowl Selection Show on NFL Network. The 2009 NFL Pro Bowl presented by State Farm will be played at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii on Sunday, February 8 and televised by NBC.

Source: NFL Media, Photo: Newscom

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NFL All-Stars Top-Ten Vote-Getters

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

After a heart-to-heart with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell about a hit on Denver Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler, it was announced today that New England Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork will not be suspended by the league. But he will be fined. We’ll have to wait until Friday to find out the exact amount, but Vince seemed pretty satisfied with the outcome:

“I think both sides were happy. He got a chance to hear my side of my story of how I approach the game. I got a chance to hear what he had to say about the whole situation of my past history and playing football. So I think we both left pretty happy.”

The only reason Vince was sent to the commissioner’s office was because of his history of unruly on-field behavior. Vince was fined a total of $35,000 last season for four different incidents — hits on Buffalo Bills quarterback J.P. Losman (a cheap shot) and Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten (after the whistle). Plus, he poked New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs in the eye during a not-so-friendly conversation and tackled then-San Diego Chargers running back Michael Turner by his facemask during the AFC Championship Game.

I don’t consider Vince a dirty player. His aggression sometimes gets a little out of control. I know the hit on Jay was not as big a deal as it was initially made out to be by the Broncos. I mean, it was an elbow to the head but I don’t think there was an intent to hurt Jay and Vince even helped him up and patted him on the back afterward. I think this was the right call. Vince didn’t deserve to be suspended and he wasn’t.

Source: Boston Herald, Photo: Newscom

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Vince Wilfork Will Be Fined, Not Suspended

The Dallas Cowboys have been decimated with injuries and problems this season. And even though they escaped this afternoon with a hard-fought 13-9 win over the Tampa Bay Bucs, tight end Jason Witten is the latest in a long line of casualties. Jason left the game at the end of the first quarter with a rib injury but remained optimistic afterward:

“I took a shot. It doesn’t feel good right now, obviously. I’m hoping for the best and hopefully get back to it next week.”

The Cowboys are certainly hoping so. This would be a very significant injury if Jason misses any time. He’s a huge part of the Cowboys’ offensive game plan — with or without quarterback Tony Romo. The Cowboys can’t afford to lose any more starters (cornerback Anthony Henry also left this game with a bruised thigh) if they hope to keep pace with the N.Y. Giants (who they play next week) and Washington Redskins in the NFC East.

Source: NFL.com

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Jason Witten Injured in Cowboys Win

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

Brett Favre’s N.Y. Jets jersey is the hottest selling NFL jersey right now. Here’s how the rest of the top ten shake out. These are the top-selling jerseys on NFLShop.com from April 1-Oct. 15, 2008:

1. Brett Favre, New York Jets
2. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
3. Eli Manning, New York Giants
4. Marion Barber, Dallas Cowboys
5. Tom Brady, New England Patriots
6. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
7. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
8. Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
9. LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers
10. Terrell Owens, Dallas Cowboys

The only surprise on the list was Jason Witten. I didn’t see him as being that popular. And where is Chad Johnson Ocho Cinco? Or Reggie Bush?

Source: CNBC.com, Photo: Newscom

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Top Ten Best-Selling NFL Jerseys

Blogging the National Football League, Blogging the NFL

The Dallas Cowboys placed a league-high 12 players on the NFC All-Star team. Among the players selected to the NFC squad was Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor, who died last month. Sean received the most votes at his position and was chosen as the starting free safety for the NFC team. A replacement will be announced at a later date. Eleven NFC players will participate in their first Pro Bowl, including Minnesota Vikings rookie running back Adrian Peterson, who leads the NFC in rushing yards with 1,278.

Five of the Cowboys’ Pro Bowl players – running back Marion Barber, guard Leonard Davis, rookie kicker Nick Folk, safety Ken Hamlin and cornerback Terence Newman – are also first-time All-Stars. They join tackle Flozell Adams (fourth Pro Bowl), center Andre Gurode (second), wide receiver Terrell Owens (sixth), quarterback Tony Romo (second), linebacker DeMarcus Ware (second) and tight end Jason Witten (fourth) to equal the largest Dallas Pro Bowl contingent ever. Dallas also had 11 players named to the All-Star team in 1993 and 1994.

The starting quarterback for the NFC is nine-time All-Star Brett Favre of the Green Bay Packers. Brett, also the leading vote-getter among fans, ties Pro Football Hall of Famers John Elway, Dan Marino, Warren Moon and Norm Van Brocklin for the second-most Pro Bowl selections by a quarterback behind Johnny Unitas with 10. Joining Brett at QB are Dallas’ Tony Romo and Seattle’s Matt Hasselbeck. Tony is the first Cowboys QB to be chosen for back-to-back Pro Bowls since Hall of Famer Troy Aikman (1992-97). Matt joins Dave Krieg as the only Seahawks quarterbacks to be named to three Pro Bowls.

Starting at running back for the NFC is AD, who seeks to become the first rookie to lead the NFC in rushing since Pro Football Hall of Famer Barry Sanders (1989). He is joined by Dallas’ Marion Barber and two-time Philadelphia Eagles All-Star Brian Westbrook, who has an NFL-best 1,896 yards from scrimmage. I kind of scratched my head at Marion’s selection, but he is the first Cowboys RB to be chosen since the 2000 Pro Bowl (Emmitt Smith) and Brian is the sixth Eagles running back with multiple All-Star selections. Filling out the backfield is Minnesota fullback Tony Richardson, who makes his third Pro Bowl appearance (Kansas City, 2004-05) and first for the NFC.

Along with Dallas’ TO, now chosen as an All-Star with three teams (San Francisco, Philadelphia), the NFC’s other starting wide receiver is Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald, who played in the 2006 Pro Bowl. Rounding out the position are a pair of Pro Bowl veterans in seven-time All-Star Torry Holt of the St. Louis Rams and three-time All-Star Donald Driver of Green Bay.

The starting tight end for the NFC is Jason Witten, making his fourth consecutive appearance in Hawaii. He is joined by Washington’s Chris Cooley, who deservedly will make his Pro Bowl debut.

Minnesota’s Steve Hutchinson will make his fifth consecutive trip to the Pro Bowl and start at guard along with the Cowboys’ Leonard Davis. Philadelphia’s Shawn Andrews was named an All-Star for the second year in a row and fills out the position.

Starting at center is Dallas’ Andre Gurode, joined by Minnesota’s Matt Birk, a six-time Pro Bowl selection.

The starting tackles are Seattle’s Walter Jones, an eight-time All-Star, and the Cowboys’ Flozell Adams. Washington’s Chris Samuels, making his fifth Pro Bowl appearance, is the NFC’s third tackle.

A pair of two-time All-Stars will start at defensive end for the NFC in Green Bay’s Aaron Kampman and Seattle’s Patrick Kerney. New York Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora, making his second trip to Hawaii, also was chosen to represent the NFC.

Two Vikings will start on the interior defensive line in three-time All-Star Kevin Williams and two-time Pro Bowl selection Pat Williams. These two combine to make the Vikings the best in the league against the run. Chicago’s Tommie Harris was chosen for the third time in his career.

Seattle’s Lofa Tatupu makes his third Pro Bowl trip and will start at inside linebacker. He will be joined at the position by rookie Patrick Willis of the San Francisco 49ers, the No. 11 overall selection in the 2007 NFL Draft. The outside linebackers are Chicago’s Lance Briggs (third Pro Bowl), Seattle’s Julian Peterson (fourth) and Dallas’ DeMarcus Ware. Julian and DeMarcus were chosen as the starters.

All three cornerbacks on the NFC team are Pro Bowl newcomers. Green Bay’s Al Harris and Seattle’s Marcus Trufant will start with Dallas’ Terence Newman coming off the bench.

At free safety, the late Sean Taylor was selected as the starter. Dallas’ Ken Hamlin also was chosen at free safety and four-time All-Star Darren Sharper of the Minnesota Vikings will be the starting strong safety.

Two Bears are among the quartet of players who will handle special teams duties for the NFC. For the second consecutive year, Chicago’s Devin Hester will be the return specialist and Brandon Ayanbadejo will be the coverage specialist. Dallas’ rookie Nick Folk is the kicker and San Francisco punter Andy Lee was selected for the first time in his career.

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Dallas Cowboys Lead NFL With 12 All-Stars, 11 First-Time Selections For NFC

I wasn’t the least bit surprised to see Jason Witten grab a record 15 catches (including the game-winner) against the Detroit Lions yesterday, breaking a Cowboys’ single-game reception total and tying the NFL mark among TEs. This kind of outburst has been brewing for some time. Just take a look at his 2007 season so far. He had nine catches against the Bills (10/8) and 10 against the Vikings (10/21). And he had eight more against Washington just before Thanksgiving. Add ‘em all up and through the first 13 games and you get 80 catches for 955 yards and seven TDs. That’s ahead of guys like Tony Gonzalez, Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Gates. Plus, he’s on a pace to shatter his own previous season-best in 2004 when he finished with 87 catches. When I talk about the new breed of tight end in the NFL, I don’t just mention Jason Witten. I call him the best there is.

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Dallas Cowboys TE Jason Witten Has Record 15 Catches in Win Over Detroit Lions

For the second year in a row, the NFL is asking fans to pick the pitch that will become its Super Bowl commercial. Rather than fans presenting ideas like last year, for the first-time ever, NFL players will be going head-to-head off-the-field with their pitches for the NFL’s Super Bowl XLII commercial.

NFL Films traveled to NFL team headquarters this fall in a customized NFL–themed tractor trailer to capture the players’ stories. Fans will have the opportunity to hear these unique tales and get an exclusive look at some of their favorite NFL players, such as:

• Patriots’ Rosevelt Colvin, who confesses he got lost on his way to the first mini-camp and arrived with two-minutes to spare drenched in sweat.
• Seahawks’ Matt Hasselbeck, who talks about the first time he received fan mail only to discover it was from someone who wanted Hasselbeck to get him an autograph from Brett Favre.
• Cowboys’ Jason Witten, who admits he neglected to bring donuts to a team meeting causing the offensive line to tie him to the goal post and pour ice on him.

The pitches will be posted on www.nfl.com/superad and 48 of them will be eligible for voting. The selected pitches will be grouped by division and fans will vote for one of six players from each division during the regular season voting round, between today and December 26. Videos from the AFC North, AFC West, NFC North and NFC West will be eligible for voting beginning today through December 12. Videos from the AFC East, AFC South, NFC East and NFC South will be eligible for voting from December 13 – December 26. The remaining videos will be posted on www.nfl.com/superad in the Video Sidelines section.

The “Super Ad: Who Wants It More?” playoff round begins December 27. The contenders will be narrowed down from 48 to eight, with each division represented by one story. In addition, one video from the Video Sidelines section will be included in the playoff round as the wildcard. Fans will vote for their favorite out of the nine finalists over an eleven-day period.

The winning pitch will be determined by fan vote and a panel of judges, consisting of various members of the extended NFL family in areas such as marketing, advertising and media. The playoff round voting period will run from 12/27/07 – 1/6/08.

Joe Pytka, filmmaker and award-winning director of numerous television commercials, including last year’s critically acclaimed NFL spot, will direct the commercial made from the winning pitch. The winning pitch will inspire the NFL’s commercial that will run during Super Bowl XLII on Sunday, Feb. 3 on FOX. The player who submits the winning pitch will be featured in the spot. Fans who vote may also enter the sweepstakes for a chance to win a trip to Super Bowl XLII in Arizona.

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NFL Launches ‘Super Ad’ Promotion to Decide Super Bowl XLII Commercial