With more than 42 million votes cast by fans on NFL.com, Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre (771,562) continues to lead all NFL All-Stars in balloting for the 2003 Pro Bowl, the NFL announced Wednesday.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Drew Bledsoe (628,288) ranks second overall while Kansas City Chiefs running back Priest Holmes (609,149), Tampa Bay Buccaneers fullback Mike Alstott (553,559), and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez (545,414) round out the top five.
Green Bay's Bubba Franks leads NFC tight ends and is ninth among all offensive players in the conference with 494,514 votes. Meanwhile, only six NFC defensive players have more votes than safety Darren Sharper's 182,432.
Mike Flanagan leads all NFC centers with 150,615 votes. Matt Bowen is first in special teams voting at 91,270.
The balloting has totaled 42,587,117 votes and is on pace to break last year's record of 43 million total votes. Voting continues on NFL.com through December 13. The squads will be announced December 19 on the 2003 Pro Bowl Selection Show on ESPN.
Packers defensive end Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila and strong safety Marques Anderson are hoping for a late push in voting. Both were added to the ballot midseason after they established themselves as starters.
This year's NFL Pro Bowl All-Star Game will be televised live on ABC-TV at 5:30 PM ET (12:30 PM HT) on February 2 and will be played in Honolulu, Hawaii.
The consensus ballots of NFL fans, players and coaches each count one-third towards determining the 43-man rosters that will represent the American and National conferences at Aloha Stadium. Players and coaches will vote on December 16-17.
The NFL is the only professional sports league that combines voting by fans, players and coaches in determining its all-star teams. The NFL became the first professional sports league to offer online voting in 1995.
Fans may vote on the NFL's website, NFL.com, to help select the AFC and NFC All-Star Teams, sponsored by Motorola and RadioShack. Fans voting on NFL.com will also qualify to win a Pro Bowl prize package.
This season fans can also cast their Pro Bowl ballots through December 1 at more than 7,200 RadioShack stores nationwide. RadioShack will offer shortened balloting, presented by Motorola, which will allow fans to quickly vote for their favorite players in the quarterback, running back, wide receiver, defensive end, outside linebacker and cornerback positions. More than 94 percent of Americans live or work within five minutes of a RadioShack store.
All fans voting at RadioShack will be entered to win an "All Access" pass to the Pro Bowl. The "All Access" pass offers one winner a trip for two to the Pro Bowl in Hawaii, including sideline access to practices, pregame and halftime courtesy of the NFL and Motorola. The winner will be announced December 19, on the 2003 Pro Bowl Selection Show on ESPN.
Listed below are the top ten offensive and defensive vote-getters, the top five rookie vote-getters and the players with the most votes at each position:
NFL ALL-STAR TOP-TEN OFFENSIVE & DEFENSIVE VOTE-GETTERS
TOP-TEN OFFENSIVE
QB, Brett Favre, Packers, 771,562
QB, Drew Bledsoe, Bills, 628,288
RB, Priest Holmes, Chiefs, 609,149
FB, Mike Alstott, Buccaneers, 553,559
TE, Tony Gonzalez, Chiefs, 545,414
RB, Marshall Faulk, Rams, 531,286
QB, Rich Gannon, Raiders, 525,137
RB, Deuce McAllister, Saints, 501,369
TE, Bubba Franks, Packers, 494,514
RB, LaDainian Tomlinson, Chargers, 462,135
TOP-TEN DEFENSIVE
LB, Brian Urlacher, Bears, 308,003
IL, Warren Sapp, Buccaneers, 268,798
DE, Jason Taylor, Dolphins, 213,885
DE, Julius Peppers, Panthers, 205,057
LB, Zach Thomas, Dolphins, 198,139
FS, Rod Woodson, Raiders, 189,700
FS, Darren Sharper, Packers, 182,432
CB, Champ Bailey, Redskins, 173,572
CB, Ronde Barber, Buccaneers, 156,603
CB, Patrick Surtain, Dolphins, 151,696
NFL ALL-STAR TOP-FIVE ROOKIE VOTE-GETTERS
TE, Jeremy Shockey, Giants, 411,342
DE, Julius Peppers, Panthers, 205,057
TE, Randy McMichael, Dolphins, 158,416
PR, Antwaan Randle El, Steelers, 91,625
RB, Clinton Portis, Broncos, 78,988
NFC LEADING VOTE-GETTERS
QB, Brett Favre, Packers, 771,562
RB, Marshall Faulk, Rams, 531,286
FB, Mike Alstott, Buccaneers, 553,559
WR, Terrell Owens, 49ers, 427,179
TE, Bubba Franks, Packers, 494,514
T, Orlando Pace, Rams, 119,307
G, Larry Allen, Cowboys, 124,471
C, Mike Flanagan, Packers, 150,615
K, David Akers, Eagles, 243,115
KR, Michael Lewis, Saints, 177,831
DE, Julius Peppers, Panthers, 205,057
IL, Warren Sapp, Buccaneers, 268,798
OLB, Derrick Brooks, Buccaneers, 137,516
ILB, Brian Urlacher, Bears, 308,003
CB, Champ Bailey, Redskins, 173,572
SS, John Lynch, Buccaneers, 101,156
FS, Darren Sharper, Packers, 182,432
P, Todd Sauerbrun, Panthers, 210,664
ST, Matt Bowen, Packers, 91,270
AFC LEADING VOTE-GETTERS
QB, Drew Bledsoe, Bills, 628,288
RB, Priest Holmes, Chiefs, 609,149
FB, Mike Anderson, Broncos, 373,358
WR, Marvin Harrison, Colts, 431,022
TE, Tony Gonzalez, Chiefs, 545,414
T, Jonathan Ogden, Ravens, 109,240
G, Will Shields, Chiefs, 90,610
C, Kevin Mawae, Jets, 83,235
K, Morten Andersen, Chiefs, 318,500
KR, Chad Morton, Jets, 123,115
DE, Jason Taylor, Dolphins, 213,885
IL, Gary Walker, Texans, 97,024
OLB, Joey Porter, Steelers, 120,014
ILB, Zach Thomas, Dolphins, 198,139
CB, Patrick Surtain, Dolphins, 151,696
SS, Greg Wesley, Chiefs, 62,575
FS, Rod Woodson, Raiders, 189,700
P, Brian Moorman, Bills, 91,199
ST, Larry Izzo, Patriots, 76,762
