Four Saints named to Pro Bowl

Four New Orleans Saints were voted to the Pro Bowl, the National Football League announced Wednesday evening. DB J.T. Gray (special teams starter), DE Cameron Jordan, RB Alvin Kamara and CB Marshon Lattimore were selected to the NFC squad to play in the NFL’s All-Star game, which will be held on Sunday, February 6, 2022, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. It marks the 14th consecutive season that the club has at least one Pro Bowl selection.

Gray, was originally signed by New Orleans as an undrafted free agent out of Mississippi State in 2018. This is his first Pro Bowl selection as he set a new career-high with 17 special teams tackles (NFL-best 14 solo) to lead the entire league through the first 15 games. Voted by his teammates as the club’s special teams captain at the start of the season, Gray has appeared in 51 regular season games since 2018, posting 40 stops, a blocked punt and a fumble recovery. Gray is the first non-specialist special teams player to be voted to the Pro Bowl since fellow Mississippi native and current Vice President of Player Development Fred McAfee (2002). Gray is coming off a stretch where he has recorded ten stops in the last six games, at least one in each, including a career-high four in the team’s December 12 win at the New York Jets.

This is Jordan’s seventh Pro Bowl, the most selections for a defensive player in club history, surpassing Pro Football Hall of Fame LB Rickey Jackson’s six. In 13 games, all starts, Jordan has recorded 42 tackles (27 solo) to lead the defensive line, six sacks for a loss of 37 yards, four passes defensed and a team-leading two forced fumbles. The team’s first round pick (24th overall) out of the University of California in 2011, Jordan is coming off a standout performance on Sunday Night Football in the team’s 9-0 shutout win of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, recording five solo tackles, two sacks, two tackles for loss, three quarterback hits and a forced fumble of Brady on a run play recovered by Lattimore, earning him NFC Defensive Player of the Week Honors. With the two takedowns, Jordan now has 100.5 career sacks, reaching the century mark and moving into a tie for 34th place all-time in quarterback takedowns. Jordan is also the team’s nominee for the National Football League’s Walter Payton Man of the Year Award.

In 11 seasons, Jordan has appeared in 173 games with 172 starts. He missed his first career game on December 12, while on the Reserve-Covid-19 list, snapping his streak of 172 consecutive appearances, what was the longest total by a position player and 171 straight starts, which was also the longest in the league among all players. The Chandler, Az. native has posted career totals of 650 tackles (408 solo), 100.5 sacks for losses of 665.5 yards, two interceptions, 56 passes defensed, 13 forced fumbles and ten fumble recoveries. His takedown total is ranked second in club record books behind Jackson.

Kamara, 5-10, 215, is a five-year NFL veteran who was selected in the third round (67th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft by the Saints out of the University of Tennessee. In 2021, Kamara has played in 10 games with eight starts and leads the Saints in both rushing and receiving for the second consecutive season with 184 carries for 668 yards with four touchdowns, to go with 38 grabs for 348 yards and four touchdowns. Kamara leads the team in total yards from scrimmage (1,015) and total touchdowns (eight). In five seasons, he has appeared in 70 regular season games with 43 starts, rushing for 4,008 yards on 668 attempts (4.7 avg.) with 47 touchdowns and has posted 348 receptions for 3,172 yards with 19 touchdowns. Kamara’s 7,180 total yards from scrimmage since entering the league in 2017 ranks second over that period. With 67 total touchdowns (47 rushing, 19 receiving and one kickoff return), Kamara is five scores from tying the franchise record. The Atlanta native is the only Saint to be named to the Pro Bowl in each of his first five NFL seasons.

Lattimore is the first Saints defensive back to be selected to the Pro Bowl three times, having started all 13 games he’s played in this season and recording 59 tackles, two interceptions, leading the NFL with 18 passes defensed and adding a fumble recovery on Sunday night at Tampa Bay to tie for the team-lead in takeaways (three). Lattimore, a first round draft pick of the Saints in 2017 out of Ohio State (11th overall) is often assigned with covering an opponent’s top wideout. He has opened all 70 games he has appeared in and has 289 career tackles (239 solo), 12 interceptions returned for 133 yards, five forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries and 73 passes defensed, the highest total by an NFL defender since he entered the league in 2017.

NFL RELEASE:

PRO BOWL WEEK CULMINATES WITH AFC-NFC MATCHUP AT ALLEGIANT STADIUM IN LAS VEGAS ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 6 

The NFL today announced the AFC and NFC All-Stars for the 2022 Pro Bowl presented by Verizon, which kicks off at 3:00 PM ET on Sunday, February 6, and will be televised on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and simulcast on ABC. Tickets are available now on ProBowl.com and will allow fans special benefits on gameday including access to the Pro Bowl Red Carpet and other family friendly activities.

Roster selections are determined by the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches. Each group’s vote counts one-third toward determining the 88 All-Star players. The NFL is the only sports league that combines voting by fans, coaches and players to determine its All-Stars. It was also the first professional sports league to offer online All-Star voting in 1995.

Twenty-six teams had at least one player selected to the 2022 Pro Bowl roster and 23 clubs had multiple players chosen as All-Stars. The INDIANAPOLIS COLTS led all teams with seven Pro Bowl selections while the KANSAS CITY CHIEFS and LOS ANGELES CHARGERS each had six players chosen. Five teams – the BALTIMORE RAVENS, CLEVELAND BROWNS, DALLAS COWBOYS, SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS and TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS – each placed five players on the Pro Bowl roster.

Tampa Bay quarterback TOM BRADY was selected to his 15th Pro Bowl, the most of any player ever, while Green Bay’s AARON RODGERS was selected to his 10th Pro Bowl. Each of the four other quarterbacks selected – the Los Angeles Chargers’ JUSTIN HERBERT, Baltimore’s LAMAR JACKSON, Kansas City’s PATRICK MAHOMES and Arizona’s KYLER MURRAY – are under the age of 27.

Thirty-one of the players selected to the Pro Bowl today are first-time All-Stars, including four rookies – wide receiver JA’MARR CHASE of the Cincinnati Bengals, linebacker MICAH PARSONS of the Dallas Cowboys, tight end KYLE PITTS of the Atlanta Falcons and tackle RASHAWN SLATER of the Los Angeles Chargers.

Minnesota’s JUSTIN JEFFERSON was named to his second-consecutive Pro Bowl since entering the league in 2020 while five other second-year players – Dallas’ TREVON DIGGS, Baltimore’s DEVIN DUVERNAY, Herbert, Indianapolis’ JONATHAN TAYLOR and Tampa Bay’s TRISTAN WIRFS – each earned their first Pro Bowl selections.

The 2022 Pro Bowl coaching staffs will be from the losing teams in the AFC and NFC Divisional playoffs with the best regular-season records.

Leading up to the game, the NFL will host a series of Pro Bowl Week festivities, bringing free experiences and activities to fans in Las Vegas. A number of events will also be focused on celebrating football at all levels. Pro Bowl Week festivities will include Pro Bowl Practice, Play Football Opening Night, the NFL FLAG Championships presented by Subway, the East-West Shrine Bowl (televised on NFL Network), the Pro Bowl Skills Showdown (televised on ESPN) and Community Day.

More details around how fans can get involved with Pro Bowl Week festivities will be announced at a later date. Visit ProBowl.com for the latest event details.

2022 PRO BOWL PLAYERS BY POSITION

(*First-time Pro Bowl selection; Bold/Italic: Starter)

AFC

OFFENSE (21)

	QUARTERBACKS (3)			TIGHT ENDS (2)
*	Justin Herbert, L.A. Chargers			Mark Andrews, Baltimore
	Lamar Jackson, Baltimore			Travis Kelce, Kansas City
	Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City
				TACKLES (3)
	WIDE RECEIVERS (4)			Orlando Brown, Kansas City
	Keenan Allen, L.A. Chargers		*	Dion Dawkins, Buffalo
*	Ja’Marr Chase, Cincinnati		*	Rashawn Slater, L.A. Chargers
	Stefon Diggs, Buffalo
	Tyreek Hill, Kansas City			GUARDS (3)
				Joel Bitonio, Cleveland
	RUNNING BACKS (3)			Quenton Nelson, Indianapolis
	Nick Chubb, Cleveland		*	Wyatt Teller, Cleveland
*	Joe Mixon, Cincinnati
*	Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis			CENTERS (2)
				Ryan Kelly, Indianapolis
	FULLBACK (1)		*	Corey Linsley, L.A. Chargers
	Patrick Ricard, Baltimore

DEFENSE (18)

	DEFENSIVE ENDS (3)			INSIDE/MIDDLE LINEBACKERS (2)
*	Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas			Darius Leonard, Indianapolis
	Myles Garrett, Cleveland		*	Denzel Perryman, Las Vegas
*	Trey Hendrickson, Cincinnati
				CORNERBACKS (4)
	INTERIOR LINEMEN (3)			Xavien Howard, Miami
	DeForest Buckner, Indianapolis		*	J.C. Jackson, New England
	Cameron Heyward, Pittsburgh		*	Kenny Moore, Indianapolis
	Chris Jones, Kansas City			Denzel Ward, Cleveland
	OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS (3)			FREE SAFETY (1)
	Joey Bosa, L.A. Chargers			Kevin Byard, Tennessee
	Matthew Judon, New England
	T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh			STRONG SAFETIES (2)
				Derwin James, L.A. Chargers
				Tyrann Mathieu, Kansas City

SPECIALISTS (5)

	PUNTER (1)			RETURN SPECIALIST (1)
*	AJ Cole, Las Vegas		*	Devin Duvernay, Baltimore
	PLACEKICKER (1)			SPECIAL TEAMER (1)
	Justin Tucker, Baltimore			Matthew Slater, New England
	LONG SNAPPER (1)
*	Luke Rhodes, Indianapolis

2022 PRO BOWL PLAYERS BY POSITION

(*First-time Pro Bowl selection; Bold/Italic: Starter)

NFC

OFFENSE (21)

	QUARTERBACKS (3)			TIGHT ENDS (2)
	Tom Brady, Tampa Bay			George Kittle, San Francisco
	Kyler Murray, Arizona		*	Kyle Pitts, Atlanta
	Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay
				TACKLES (3)
	WIDE RECEIVERS (4)			Tyron Smith, Dallas
	Davante Adams, Green Bay			Trent Williams, San Francisco
	Justin Jefferson, Minnesota		*	Tristan Wirfs, Tampa Bay
*	Cooper Kupp, L.A. Rams
*	Deebo Samuel, San Francisco			GUARDS (3)
			*	Ali Marpet, Tampa Bay
	RUNNING BACKS (3)			Zack Martin, Dallas
	Alvin Kamara, New Orleans			Brandon Scherff, Washington
	James Conner, Arizona
	Dalvin Cook, Minnesota			CENTERS (2)
			*	Ryan Jensen, Tampa Bay
	FULLBACK (1)			Jason Kelce, Philadelphia
	Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco

DEFENSE (18)

	DEFENSIVE ENDS (3)			INSIDE/MIDDLE LINEBACKERS (2)
	Nick Bosa, San Francisco		*	Micah Parsons, Dallas
*	Brian Burns, Carolina			Bobby Wagner, Seattle
	Cameron Jordan, New Orleans
				CORNERBACKS (4)
	INTERIOR LINEMEN (3)		*	Trevon Diggs, Dallas
*	Jonathan Allen, Washington			Marshon Lattimore, New Orleans
	Kenny Clark, Green Bay			Jalen Ramsey, L.A. Rams
	Aaron Donald, L.A. Rams			Darius Slay, Philadelphia
	OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS (3)			FREE SAFETY (1)
	Shaquil Barrett, Tampa Bay			Quandre Diggs, Seattle
	Chandler Jones, Arizona
	Robert Quinn, Chicago			STRONG SAFETIES (2)
				Budda Baker, Arizona
				Harrison Smith, Minnesota

SPECIALISTS (5)

	PUNTER (1)			RETURN SPECIALIST (1)
*	Bryan Anger, Dallas		*	Jakeem Grant, Chicago
	PLACEKICKER (1)			SPECIAL TEAMER (1)
*	Matt Gay, L.A. Rams		*	J.T. Gray, New Orleans
	LONG SNAPPER (1)
*	Josh Harris, Atlanta

2022 PRO BOWL PLAYERS BY CLUB

PLAYER	POSITION	PRO BOWLS
ARIZONA (4)
Budda Baker	Strong Safety	4
James Conner	Running Back	2
Chandler Jones	Outside Linebacker	4
Kyler Murray	Quarterback	2
ATLANTA (2)
Josh Harris	Long Snapper	1
Kyle Pitts	Tight End	1
BALTIMORE (5)
Mark Andrews	Tight End	2
Devin Duvernay	Return Specialist	1
Lamar Jackson	Quarterback	2
Patrick Ricard	Fullback	3
Justin Tucker	Placekicker	5
BUFFALO (2)
Dion Dawkins	Tackle	1
Stefon Diggs	Wide Receiver	2
CAROLINA (1)
Brian Burns	Defensive End	1
CHICAGO (2)
Jakeem Grant	Return Specialist	1
Robert Quinn	Outside Linebacker	3
CINCINNATI (3)
Ja’Marr Chase	Wide Receiver	1
Trey Hendrickson	Defensive End	1
Joe Mixon	Running Back	1
CLEVELAND (5)
Joel Bitonio	Guard	4
Nick Chubb	Running Back	3
Myles Garrett	Defensive End	3
Wyatt Teller	Guard	1
Denzel Ward	Cornerback	2
DALLAS (5)
Bryan Anger	Punter	1
Trevon Diggs	Cornerback	1
Zack Martin	Guard	7
Micah Parsons	Inside/Middle Linebacker	1
Tyron Smith	Tackle	8
GREEN BAY (3)
Davante Adams	Wide Receiver	5
Kenny Clark	Interior Lineman	2
Aaron Rodgers	Quarterback	10
INDIANAPOLIS (7)
DeForest Buckner	Interior Lineman	2
Ryan Kelly	Center	3
Darius Leonard	Inside/Middle Linebacker	3
Kenny Moore	Cornerback	1
Quenton Nelson	Guard	4
Luke Rhodes	Long Snapper	1
Jonathan Taylor	Running Back	1
KANSAS CITY (6)
Orlando Brown	Tackle	3
Tyreek Hill	Wide Receiver	6
Chris Jones	Interior Lineman	3
Travis Kelce	Tight End	7
Patrick Mahomes	Quarterback	4
Tyrann Mathieu	Strong Safety	3
LAS VEGAS (3)
AJ Cole	Punter	1
Maxx Crosby	Defensive End	1
Denzel Perryman	Inside/Middle Linebacker	1
LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (6)
Keenan Allen	Wide Receiver	5
Joey Bosa	Outside Linebacker	4
Justin Herbert	Quarterback	1
Derwin James	Strong Safety	2
Corey Linsley	Center	1
Rashawn Slater	Tackle	1
LOS ANGELES RAMS (4)
Aaron Donald	Interior Lineman	8
Matt Gay	Placekicker	1
Cooper Kupp	Wide Receiver	1
Jalen Ramsey	Cornerback	5
MIAMI (1)
Xavien Howard	Cornerback	3
MINNESOTA (3)
Dalvin Cook	Running Back	3
Justin Jefferson	Wide Receiver	2
Harrison Smith	Strong Safety	6
NEW ENGLAND (3)
J.C. Jackson	Cornerback	1
Matthew Judon	Outside Linebacker	3
Matthew Slater	Special Teamer	10
NEW ORLEANS (4)
J.T. Gray	Special Teamer	1
Cameron Jordan	Defensive End	7
Alvin Kamara	Running Back	5
Marshon Lattimore	Cornerback	4
PHILADELPHIA (2)
Jason Kelce	Center	5
Darius Slay	Cornerback	4
PITTSBURGH (2)
Cameron Heyward	Interior Lineman	5
T.J. Watt	Outside Linebacker	4
SAN FRANCISCO (5)
Nick Bosa	Defensive End	2
Kyle Juszczyk	Fullback	6
George Kittle	Tight End	3
Deebo Samuel	Wide Receiver	1
Trent Williams	Tackle	9
SEATTLE (2)
Quandre Diggs	Free Safety	2
Bobby Wagner	Inside/Middle Linebacker	8
TAMPA BAY (5)
Shaquil Barrett	Outside Linebacker	2
Tom Brady	Quarterback	15
Ryan Jensen	Center	1
Ali Marpet	Guard	1
Tristan Wirfs	Tackle	1
TENNESSEE (1)
Kevin Byard	Free Safety	2
WASHINGTON (2)
Jonathan Allen	Interior Lineman	1
Brandon Scherff	Guard	5