With nearly 18 million votes cast by fans on NFL.com, Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre (317,986) leads all NFL All-Stars in balloting for the 2003 Pro Bowl, the NFL announced Thursday.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Drew Bledsoe (294,091), the NFL's leading passer with 2,802 yards, ranks second overall while Kansas City Chiefs running back Priest Holmes (257,334) and tight end Tony Gonzalez (239,205) rank third and fourth overall. Tampa Bay Buccaneers fullback Mike Alstott (386,902) rounds out the top five.
The balloting, which started three weeks ago, has reached 17,989,687 total votes and is on pace to break last year's record of 33 million total votes. Voting continues on NFL.com through December 16. The squads will be announced December 19 on the 2003 Pro Bowl Selection Show on ESPN.
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 overall vote-getters and the players with the most votes at each position through November 6:
NFL ALL-STAR TOP-TEN VOTE-GETTERS
1. Brett Favre, QB, Packers, 317,986
- Drew Bledsoe, QB, Bills, 294,091
- Priest Holmes, RB, Chiefs, 257,334
- Tony Gonzalez, TE, Chiefs, 239,205
- Mike Alstott, FB, Buccaneers, 239,085
- Marshall Faulk, RB, Rams, 221,931
- Deuce McAllister, RB, Saints, 218,304
- LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, Chargers, 197,260
9. Ahman Green, RB, Packers, 195,069
10. Bubba Franks, TE, Packers, 192,985
NFC LEADING VOTE-GETTERS
QB, Brett Favre, Packers, 317,986
RB, Marshall Faulk, Rams, 221,931
FB, Mike Alstott, Buccaneers, 239,085
WR, Donald Driver, Packers, 160,538
TE, Bubba Franks, Packers, 192,985
T, Orlando Pace, Rams, 46,525
G, Larry Allen, Cowboys, 57,573
C, Mike Flanagan, Packers, 57,361
K, Ryan Longwell, Packers, 123,290
KR, Michael Lewis, Saints, 79,727
DE, Julius Peppers, Panthers, 88,011
IL, Warren Sapp, Buccaneers, 111,927
OLB, Derrick Brooks, Buccaneers, 58,350
ILB, Brian Urlacher, Bears, 129,724
CB, Champ Bailey, Redskins, 79,467
SS, Sammy Knight, Saints, 48,865
FS, Darren Sharper, Packers, 61,495
P, Todd Sauerbrun, Panthers, 84,529
ST, Matt Bowen, Packers, 33,394
AFC LEADING VOTE-GETTERS
QB, Drew Bledsoe, Bills, 294,091
RB, Priest Holmes, Chiefs, 257,334
FB, Mike Anderson, Broncos, 154,827
WR, Eric Moulds, Bills, 179,526
TE, Tony Gonzalez, Chiefsm 239,205
T, Willie Roaf, Chiefs, 49,640
G, Will Shields, Chiefs, 40,519
C, Tom Nalen, Broncos, 36,143
K, Morten Andersen, Chiefs, 128,370
KR, Chad Morton, Jets, 56,008
DE, Jason Taylor, Dolphins, 94,089
IL, Gary Walker, Texans, 44,797
OLB, Joey Porter, Steelers, 49,943
ILB, Ray Lewis, Ravens, 85,614
DE, Deltha O'Neal, Broncos, 58,734
SS, Greg Wesley, Chiefs, 37,537
FS, Rod Woodson, Raiders, 80,810
P, Hunter Smith, Colts, 48,463
ST, Larry Izzo, Patriots, 33,604
