Top 10: Pro Bowl Snubs

Year in and year out the NFL's all-star game, The Pro Bowl gets worse and worse. An all-star game is supposed to feature the leagues best players, right? If so, then why is the NFL Pro Bowl such a popularity contest.

This year, more than others is an example of how poor the Pro Bowl has become. Here are my top 10 Pro Bowl snubs.

1) DeAngelo Williams, RB Carolina Panthers: It's hard not to have Williams on this list with the year he's having. The former first-round pick has rushed for 1,229 yards this year with 16 total touchdowns to lead the NFL. Williams sits behind Washington's Clinton Portis on the rushing yards list ( Portis made the Pro Bowl) but  DeAngelo has averaged 5.5 yards per carry this season compared to Portis' 4.6. Now I'm not knocking Portis, he's having a tremendous season, but Williams has been the better back in my opinion.

2) Phillip Rivers, QB San Diego Chargers: Here is what I think is one of the worst snubs in Pro Bowl history, Brett Favre over Phillip Rivers. Yes, Favre and the Jets are in the thick of the playoff race and Rivers and the Chargers are on the outside looking in, but overall, Rivers has had a better year by leaps and bounds over Brett.

Rivers, right now is the NFL's top rated passer and is ranked 5th in total yards. Favre on the other hand is in the middle of the pack as far as rating goes and leads the league in interceptions- 17. That is the epitome of a popular vote.

3) Cory Webster, CB New York Giants: It pains me to say this, but I can't believe the best corner back in the NFL got snubbed out of his first Pro Bowl selection. Cory has been the leagues most consistent corner through these 15 weeks. He is tied with Pro Bowl corner Asante Samuel for the NFL lead in pass deflections thus far with 24, he has 13 more tackles than Samuel, and has two forced fumbles. Also, Webster has done most of this while being bothered with injuries, just a shame he wasn't selected.

4) London Fletcher, LB Washington Redskins: You could say that London Fletcher is the biggest Pro Bowl sunb since Fred Taylor. In his 11 years as a pro, Fletcher has totaled 100+ tackles in eight of them. He has been one of the NFL's top linebackers for the past eight or nine seasons and has never been selected for a trip to Hawaii. The eight time alternate even stated this week it's a travesty that he's never been to a Pro Bowl.

5) Calvin Johnson, WR Detroit Lions:  Calvin Johnson may be on the worst team in the NFL, but there aren't many receivers who have had the year he's had. Johnson has had an outstanding sophomore season with 65 receptions, 1165 yards and 10 touchdowns. It's tough to put Johnson on this list due to the plethora of deserving receivers in the NFC. But Johnson's year could have been much better had he been given a consistent quarterback instead of the five that have lined up under center for Detroit this year.

6) Quintin Mikell, SS Philadelphia Eagles: When you look around the NFC, I don't think you'll find a better strong safety other than Quintin Mikell. Following a breakout year in 2007, "Q" has had an even better 2008 with his 82 tackles, three interceptions and two forced fumbles. The only strong safety selected in 2008 is Adrian Wilson, another very talented player, a perennial Pro Bowler who has not played as well as years passed. Another example of how the Pro Bowl is a popularity contest.

7)Steve Slaton, RB Houston Texans: Slaton, has had maybe an even bigger year than rookie Chris Johnson, is more than deserving of a trip to Hawaii. It's hard to believe that Slaton was pushed aside for Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown. Brown, is not having a better year than Slaton, and has made less of an impact than the diminutive Slaton in 2008. The Texans rookie should be one of the top players in rookie of the year voting as the season draws to it's end.

8) Donnie Jones, P St. Louis Rams: You could make a case that Donnie Jones is deserving of a Pro Bowl selection. Sadly, he has been the Rams best player this season. Jeff Feagles of the Giants was selected over Jones and is well deserving. But Jones is a great punter on a horrible team. Feagles on the other hand is a great punter on a great team. When you have the success that Jones has had, on such a bad team surrounded by bad players, I'd give the edge to Donnie over Jeff.

9) D'Qwell Jackson, LB Cleveland Browns: Tackling machine D'Qwell Jackson is another great player stuck on a bad team. Jackson leads the NFL in tackles in 2008 and is the leader of the Brown defense. Since he took his first step in Cleveland, Jackson has had a nose for the ball and has been one of the leagues top tacklers, this year has been his true coming out party, but that party will go without a trip to Hawaii to show off his skills.

10) Kirk Morrison, LB Oakland Raiders: Like Donnie Jones and D'Qwell Jackson, Morrison is another solid player stuck on a bad team. Since his NFL debut in 2005 Kirk has been one the NFL's most productive linebackers, registering 110+ tackles in every season. In 2008 Morrison has remained productive and is having another great season with 120 total tackles, one sack, and two forced fumbles.