Quarterback Patrick Mahomes and five other Chiefs selected for 2020 Pro Bowl
The Kansas City Chiefs have six players selected to the 2020 Pro Bowl in Orlando, the NFL announced Tuesday night.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes, wide receiver Tyreek Hill, rookie wide receiver Mecole Hardman, tight end Travis Kelce, defensive end Frank Clark and defensive tackle Chris Jones were named to the roster for the AFC team, which will face the NFC all-stars on Jan. 26, a week before Super Bowl LIV in Miami.
Mahomes, who was named to his second straight Pro Bowl, received the third-most votes overall (468,838) behind Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (704,699) and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (539,768 votes), arguably the two front-runners for the league’s MVP award — won last year, of course, by Mahomes.
The Chiefs signal-caller enters this Sunday’s game in Chicago against the Bears with 3,606 yards passing and 23 touchdowns against four interceptions for a 106.2 passer rating. The Chiefs are 10-4 and recently claimed their fourth straight AFC West division title. Mahomes, who missed two games with a knee injury this season, ranks eighth in the league in passing.
Hill, who missed four games with a shoulder injury, earned his fourth straight Pro Bowl selection. He has 49 catches for 727 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging 14.8 yards per catch.
Kelce garnered his fifth straight Pro Bowl selection a week after becoming the first tight end in NFL history to record four consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. He enters Week 16 with 86 catches for 1,131 yards and four touchdowns.
Clark, who has dealt with a variety of injuries this year, and Jones each earned their first career selection to the Pro Bowl. Clark has six sacks and 11 quarterback hits in 12 games, while Jones leads the Chiefs with seven sacks and 17 quarterback hits.
Hardman, the Chiefs’ speedy second-round pick out Georgia, received an AFC-best 91,358 votes as a return specialist. He leads the Chiefs in punt returns (10.5-yard average) and kickoff returns (23-yard average).
Hill, Kelce, Clark and Hardman were selected as starters, while Mahomes and Jones were selected as backups.
Right tackle Mitchell Schwartz and safety Tyrann Mathieu were overlooked for Pro Bowl berths. The same thing happened to Schwartz last season, but Associated Press voters made up for the snub by selecting Schwartz, one of the best right tackles in the league, as a first-team All-Pro.
Pro Bowl selections are determined by consensus votes of coaches, players and fans, with each group counting one-third toward shaping the 88 total players on the AFC and NFC rosters.
The Pro Bowl and related festivities will take place at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.
Should Kansas City advance to the Super Bowl, the league will select alternates to replace the Chiefs named to the Pro Bowl.
The Ravens led all teams with 12 Pro Bowlers, joining the 2007 Dallas Cowboys and 1973 Miami Dolphins as the only teams with a dozen Pro Bowl representatives since 1970. The New Orleans Saints were a distant second to Baltimore with seven Pro Bowlers named Tuesday night.
This story was originally published December 17, 2019 at 7:16 PM.
