Addition of Colts QB to Pro Bowl roster shows why event should be abolished

Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew II was added to the roster for the Pro Bowl Games, the latest reminder that there's no reason for Pro Bowl weekend to exist.

The league already eliminated an actual game and replaced it with a series of other events, including a precision passing drill, dodgeball and flag football game.

With players from the 49ers and Chiefs rosters unavailable due to the Super Bowl and 27 others due to injuries and personal reasons, the league apparently didn't have many options better than Minshew.

He's a perfectly fine quarterback who did an admirable job keeping the Colts in playoff contention until the final week of the regular season, but he by no means played at a Pro Bowl level.

The league has struggled to keep the exhibition event relevant, and inviting a player in the bottom third in the league at his position won't gain the Pro Bowl Games any cachet.

Among the 25 quarterbacks with at least 403 dropbacks, Minshew ranked 20th in yards per attempt. Per Pro Football Focus, he also ranked 23rd in big-time throws, which the site defines as "a pass with excellent ball location and timing, generally thrown further down the field and/or into a tighter window," and tied for 21st in turnover-worthy plays. 

It's unfair to Minshew that he's the poster child for why the Pro Bowl is a farce. His selection is more warranted than when Ravens backup quarterback Tyler Huntley was invited in 2023.

But the Pro Bowl should be a celebration of the NFL's best. If it can't be that, why have it at all?