Is Wes Welker Really More Pro Bowl Worthy Than Randy Moss?

I usually, just like most people, don't agree with every single one of the Pro Bowl selections. However, this year's Pro Bowl selections have baffled me more than usual.

Here’s what bothering me about the offensive selections.

I look at the AFC roster and I see Wes Welker, but I don’t see Randy Moss?

Welker may have 101 receptions and 1071 yards on the season, but how many of those receptions were from bubble screens or a direct result of Randy Moss drawing attention?

Welker is second in the league in receptions, but receptions are a such an overrated stat. There are 14 other guys in the NFL with a higher yard average per catch with over 70 receptions.

In fact, you have to go all the way down to the 30th leader in NFL receptions to find someone with a lower yard average per catch and that player is running back Matt Forte.

Welker also only has two receiving touchdowns on the season compared to Moss’ ten. When is the last time a receiver with two receiving touchdowns made the Pro Bowl?

Moss has 171 less yards than Welker but 8 more touchdowns. I wonder what the Patriots would rather have, Welker's extra 171 yards or Moss' eight touchdowns.

Moss' stats are not only better than Welker's in my opinion, but Randy Moss' effect on the Patriots offense is something that goes undervalued.

Even when Moss isn't putting up big numbers, he's opening things up for the other receivers and the running game. Moss is one of a few players that can have an impact on a game without putting a big mark in the stat sheet because of all the attention he demands.

Now don't get me wrong here, because I'm not saying Welker isn't a great receiver. I'm not as upset with his selection as I am with the selection of him over Moss.

Welker is a very dynamic receiver who can be very hard to bring down. But honestly who do you think is more valuable to his team Welker or Moss?

If a Patriot receiver was going to be selected, it should have been Moss.

The guy who most obviously shouldn’t make the Pro Bowl based on performance in the AFC is the NFL leader in interceptions Brett Favre.  

Favre has the 15th best quarterback rating in the NFL and there a handful of players most notably Philip Rivers with better statistics. Favre got the nod solely based on his reputation and there is no denying it.

However, if Favre got in solely based on his reputation, why is it that Randy Moss’s reputation didn’t help him at all?

Actually, the answer is pretty obvious. While Most people in the NFL like Favre and respect him, many people don’t like or respect Moss at all. I would have thought that Moss had left his reputation behind him as he showed this year how great of a team leader he is.

Moss may not have as good as stats as last year, but he has been more important to the team this year and he was a MVP candidate last year.

When I look at the NFC roster, I am shocked to see Eli Manning on the roster when there are more valuable players to their teams not selected such as Tony Romo, Donovan McNabb, and Matt Ryan.

Eli Manning is a very good quarterback and he has been a great leader as he has led his team to an 11-3 record. However, just in the NFC alone there are eight other quarterbacks with a better quarterback rating, seven quarterbacks with more yards, and five quarterback with more touchdowns, and none of them have as good of a running game (Giants have the best running game in the NFL) on their team. 

While winning can give one player the edge between two players, this generally only occurs if the players are both similarly valuable to their teams. However, Tony Romo, Donovan McNabb, and Matt Ryan are all clearly more valuable to their teams and all seem like better choices to me; especially Romo, who has the second highest quarterback rating in the league.

My other problem with the NFC selections is Clinton Portis over Brandon Jacobs and DeAngelo Williams.

Portis who is having a fantastic season has faded away this season when it was most important and his team is not going to playoffs. 

Since Week Nine, he has one 100-yard game, as his team has gone 1-5 in those games. There are two candidates I believe are more deserving than Portis.

Brandon Jacobs has been a beast this year with 1002 rushing yards in 12 games with a 5.1 YPC average, the second best in the NFL including players with at least 100 carries, and his team is 1-2 without him.

DeAngelo Williams has 1229 rushing yards on the season with a 5.5 YPC average, the best in the NFL, and was also snubbed as well. Portis clearly made it because he has the third most amount of rushing yards in the NFL.

However, YPC is a much more valuable stat than total yards when comparing players who all have over 200 carries. That’s why Jacobs and Williams are clearly more deserving.

I get the fact that it’s never going to be perfect, but players like Wes Welker, Brett Favre, Eli Manning, and Portis should not be in the Pro Bowl when there are clearly more deserving players.