The Pro Bowl game itself may not mean very much in today's NFL, but it's still a great accolade and career achievement that can define some players not quite good enough to win MVP, or good and lucky enough to hoist the Lombardi Trophy. It's hard enough to find yourself one of 53 spots on an NFL roster, it's much, much harder to be able to call yourself a Pro Bowler, especially when, for most positions, only two or three players from 16 teams in a conference get the honour each year.
The AFC East has been dominated by one team for the past two decades, but now that Tom Brady is gone, all of the talent within the division have a chance to shine as they battle it out for AFC East supremacy. Most teams have at least 4-5 players who are worthy of a Pro Bowl, but today, we are narrowing it down to just one player per team with the best chance of receiving that honour in 2022.
Buffalo Bills - Josh Allen
Josh Allen has been improving every season in the NFL, to the point where it can no longer be disputed that he's a top-3 Quarterback in the league. His ultimate goal in 2022 will be to take the Bills where they've never been before: Super Bowl glory, but in the process, he's going to further establish himself as one of, if not the best QB's and leaders in the entire game.
There's some incredibly talented names at QB in the AFC, but beyond Justin Herbert and Patrick Mahomes, there's no one in 2022 who has the ability to outplay the former Wyoming stud. Allen has insane skill and athleticism for his impressive size, and has proven to be very clutch over the past two seasons, and if Buffalo can stay healthy, don't be shocked if Allen comes home with not only a Pro Bowl nod, but MVP and a Lombardi too.
New York Jets - Quinnen Williams
Over the past decade, the Jets have struggled to find sustained success, and it's no surprise that they've consistently had no one representing them in the Pro Bowl, with the exception of a two season stint from Jamal Adams. Thankfully for Jets fans, Joe Douglas has done a great job building this young team up, to the point where they have players that could potentially be regulars in this game for years to come (Sauce Gardner, Elijah Moore, Garrett Wilson), but in 2022, the one with the best shot is defensive tackle Quinnen Williams.
Williams seems to have had a slow start to his career, and many outside of New York don't see him as having lived up to his lofty draft position, but with more and more help each year, he's improving as a dominant physical force. His 2022 season is shaping up to be his best yet, and if Carl Lawson, John Franklin-Myers and Jermaine Johnson can draw attention away from him, we will see Williams blossom into one of the best DT's in the entire league.
Miami Dolphins - Tyreek Hill
When the Dolphins swung for the fences in the 2022 off-season, they certainly connected, as they were able to pry the electrifying Tyreek Hill away from the Kansas City Chiefs and the best Quarterback in the NFL, Patrick Mahomes. Outside of a few videos posted to Twitter, the Tua connection is reportedly coming along well, and even if the wide receiver position in the AFC is stacked, Hill is good enough to solidify himself among the best of the best.
Jaylen Waddle being out there means that Tyreek won't have as much heat on him every play, and if Tua is capable of making the deep throws, Hill's play shouldn't fall off at all while making the transition to Miami. The move may not pay off in terms of team success for the Dolphins, but if Tua and Tyreek have a genuinely good connection, then it will help them when it comes to recruiting future stars to South Beach.
New England Patriots - Matthew Judon
The Patriots have had the luxury of Tom Brady leading this offence for two decades, and even after his departure, in his rookie season, Mac Jones did a serviceable job leading this New England team to a Wild Card spot. Unfortunately, it looks like this offence has taken a step back in training camp, and while Bill Belichik may be able to fix this, it's obvious that a defensive player will have a much better chance of representing the Pats in the Pro Bowl.
They may not have the stars of yesteryear on that side of the ball, but Matthew Judon is everything this team wants out of a defensive player, and after a career high 12.5 sacks and a third consecutive Pro Bowl in his first season with New England, this is a very safe bet. This team will have an uphill battle to reclaim glory in the AFC East once again, but one thing is for sure, Matthew Judon is going to consistently get to the QB, and it's going to make this a tough defensive unit to pay against, week in, week out.
Photo Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Photo Credit: Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK
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