3 Rookies Are Headed to Pro Bowl

Receiving a Pro Bowl nomination is a goal for all NFL players, and rookies especially dream of it when they hear their names called in the draft. However, the Pro Bowl is, to some extent, a popularity contest, and establishing a reputation takes years, putting first-year players at a disadvantage.

3 Rookies Are Headed to Pro Bowl

This year, three rookies are included in the released Pro Bowl rosters.

1. Brock Bowers

Tight end is a tough position to make the transition from college to the pros. In college, most of the top guys are just tall receivers and glorified slot receivers. At the next level, they need to learn how to block, or the teams don’t let them see the field, and the game is more physical. Suddenly, opposing linebackers are fast, and safeties are big.

Brock Bowers is different. Everyone has waited for his move from college to the NFL since his freshman season at Georgia, and he arrived in the 2024 draft, landing in Las Vegas. It didn’t take long for him to hit his strides. Bowers is the one reason for hope on a franchise in shambles. He has caught 108 passes for 1,144 yards and four touchdowns in one of the most prolific seasons by a tight end in NFL history, let alone by a rookie tight end.

The tight end is seemingly breaking records weekly and has surely earned his trip to the Pro Bowl games.

2. Jayden Daniels

The Chicago Bears had the first overall pick and chose Caleb Williams out of USC. He has shown flashes of why he was viewed as the logical top choice, but classmate Jayden Daniels has taken the league by storm. Washington hired Kliff Kingsbury as his coordinator and the former Cardinals head coach knew what to do with a mobile quarterback after coaching Kyler Murray.

Daniels has been an outstanding runner from the quarterback position, as expected, but he has also been excellent throwing the ball. He has produced 3,530 yards and 25 touchdowns through the air while running for 864 yards and six touchdowns. A quarterback that can do both at a high level will always be a threat in the NFL and Daniels sure can.

All eyes are generally on the quarterback and he has immediately turned around a franchise that hasn’t had much to cheer for in recent years. A trip to the postseason in guaranteed and he can show the world that the Bears should’ve taken him, instead.

3. Jared Verse

Speaking of draft mistakes, the Vikings traded up for an edge rusher and drafted Dallas Turner out of Alabama. Jared Verse, a Florida State edge defender was still on the board but they passed. The Los Angeles Rams gladly swooped him up with a rare draft pick in the first round. It was the first since Jared Goff, to be exact.

While Turner has, just like Williams, occasionally demonstrated his potential (he is also two years younger), Verse has been a standout defense for the Rams. He ranks in the top six in QB pressures, QB hits, QB hurries, and pass rush win rate, according to PFF. He has recorded 4.5 sacks and 65 tackles in his debut season.

Aaron Donald retired and in the same offseason, the Rams find a new defensive staple they can build around for years to come.

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Janik Eckardt is a football fan who was drawn to the sport by Adrian Peterson’s excellence. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and has an affinity for Classic rock. His active Twitter page can be found here. His work can be found on PurplePTSD, VikingsTerritory, and DraftHuddle.