Dez Bryant replaces Julio Jones in 2017 Pro Bowl

Per the Dallas Cowboys’ Twitter account, WR Dez Bryant is being named to his third Pro Bowl in the place of Falcons WR Julio Jones, who cannot attend because his team is headed to the Super Bowl.

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant will be among the team’s now seven pro bowlers in the annual all-star game this coming weekend. This will be his first Pro Bowl appearance since his dominant 2014 season.

Bryant had a very mixed year in 2016 and it’s certainly not out of the question to present this selection, even as an alternate, as a surprise. There were many other younger wide receivers who were more deserving of a Pro Bowl selection than he was. One being Saints rookie wide receiver Michael Thomas. Thomas beat Bryant out in catches, yards and touchdowns, but still Bryant was selected over him.

The numbers above show that Thomas was just flat-out better than Bryant, and this is with Thomas sharing targets with with quality teammates in Brandin Cooks and Willie Snead. Bryant didn’t share targets as much as Thomas had to, as the No. 1 wide receiver on the Cowboys. Michael Thomas, you can argue, isn’t even the No. 1 wide receiver on his own team, with Brandin Cooks taking that role.

But this story of a under-performing veteran beating out a better rookie isn’t a new one, and isn’t ending anytime soon. This further reinforces the fact that performance isn’t everything for the Pro Bowl and sometimes being the most popular is the key to being selected to the game.

Fact is, Bryant had a average season, yet still beat out a spectacular rookie based on the fact he’s played longer, not on a pure performance standpoint.