Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, left tackle David Bakhtiari named to NFC Pro Bowl team
Jim OwczarskiGREEN BAY - Quarterback Aaron Rodgers and left tackle David Bakhtiari of the NFC North-leading Green Bay Packers were named to the 2020 Pro Bowl on Tuesday.
The NFL announced the selections, which were made by a voting system in which fan, coach and player votes carried equal weight.
The Packers are one of four NFC teams with an 11-3 record.
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Rodgers will be making his eighth trip and fifth in the last six years (he wasn't chosen after missing nine games due to injury in 2017). Rodgers leads the league in interception percentage at 0.4% and is tied for ninth with a 100.4 passer rating. He was chosen along with the New Orleans Saints' Drew Brees as backups to starter Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks.
Bakhtiari, who was chosen as a starter, will be making his second trip to the annual postseason exhibition, his first coming in 2016. He was an All-Pro last season but was not a Pro Bowler. The star left tackle has a $500,000 Pro Bowl escalator in his contract for the 2019 season.
When fan voting concluded Dec. 12, Bakhtiari and outside linebacker Preston Smith led their respective position group.
Smith was named as one of 10 alternates to the team. Smith has a career-high 11.5 sacks, which is sixth in the NFL.
The other nine alternates for the Packers were:
Mason Crosby, K (first alternate)
Za’Darius Smith, OLB (first alternate)
Davante Adams, WR
Jaire Alexander, CB
Adrian Amos, S
Kenny Clark, DL
Aaron Jones, RB
Corey Linsley, C
Danny Vitale, FB
If all the alternates make the final roster by the Jan. 26 date of the all-star game in Orlando, Florida, all but Adams will be first-time participants. It would be Adams’ third trip.
Za’Darius Smith (career-high 10 sacks) and Amos (career-high 2 interceptions) are having impact seasons for the Packers, as is Jones (17 touchdowns). Crosby is having a career year (94% on field goals, 100% on extra points), while Clark is on pace for career highs in sacks and tackles.