First-timers Tony Pollard and KaVontae Turpin among 7 Dallas Cowboys named to Pro Bowl
When the NFL announced the 2022 Pro Bowl rosters Wednesday, two Dallas Cowboys saw their breakout seasons rewarded with first-time selections.
Running back Tony Pollard and kick returner KaVontae Turpin were among seven Cowboys named to the NFC roster.
Linebacker Micah Parsons, the only Cowboys player named as a starter, cornerback Trevon Diggs and receiver CeeDee Lamb made it for the second time in as many seasons.
Defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence earned his third selection. And guard Zack Martin made it for the eighth time in his nine-year career.
The Pro Bowl will not have the same look as years past, as the NFL has replaced the actual game with a Skills Challenge in Las Vegas.
The NFL Pro Bowl Games will showcase a variety of football-related challenges between the AFC and NFC, with Peyton and Eli Manning serving as the captains. The Pro Bowl Games will take place at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, televised live by ESPN/ABC.
Being selected to the Pro Bowl remains just as sweet, especially for the first-timers.
Turpin, the only player in the NFL with both a punt return and kickoff return of 50+ yards, is first true return specialist to make the Pro Bowl for the franchise, capping a year-round season of football that began in the USFL in the spring before signing with the Cowboys and making the team in training camp as a rookie.
Pollard, who has only three starts on the season and is considered the backup to two-time rushing champ and three-time Pro Bowler Ezekiel Elliott, leads the Cowboys and is seventh in the NFL in rushing with 969 yards and nine touchdowns. He three more touchdowns receiving. And he leads the NFL with a 5.5 average yards per carry.
Martin tied teammate Tyron Smith and Hall of Famer Randy White with his eighth Pro Bowl, ranking sixth in franchise history. The only other Cowboys offensive lineman with more Pro Bowls is Hall of Famer Larry Allen with 10.
Lamb leads the Cowboys with 81 catches for 1,087 receiving yards and six touchdowns.
Despite having just six sacks this season, Lawrence is back in the Pro Bowl for the first time since being selected in back-to-back seasons in 2017 and 2018.
Diggs, who led the NFL in interceptions last season, is the first Cowboys cornerback since Deion Sanders to make it in consecutive years. Sanders earned four straight while playing for Dallas (1996-99).
Parsons, who leads the Cowboys and is fourth in the NFL with 13 sacks, is the seventh player in franchise history to make the Pro Bowl in each of his first two seasons in the NFL.
He is just the third defensive player to do so, along with Everson Walls (1981-82) and Mel Renfro (1964-65).
Parsons is also a prime contender for NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors. DE Harvey Martin is the only Cowboys player to ever win the award, in 1977.
This story was originally published December 21, 2022 at 9:34 PM.
