If you’ve haven’t watched any of the two games Baltimore Ravens QB Tyler Huntley has started in 2022 you have missed the worst quarterback play you will ever see in your life.
With Lamar Jackson out due to knee injury, Huntley has gone 1-1 as a starter, 0 TUDS to go with 2 INTs, with 413 yards passing in three games. Huntley, he of 2021 NFL Preseason statistical dominance.
Somehow with those numbers, Huntley was announced today as the AFC’s fourth Pro Bowl alternate at quarterback via Adam Schefter.
The three AFC Pro Bowl quarterbacks are Josh Allen of the Bills, Patrick Mahomes of the Chiefs, and Joe Burrow of the Bengals. Two alternates landed ahead of Jackson and Huntley; one reportedly is Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
If the other is Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, that means Huntley finished higher than Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence. If the other is Lawrence, it means Huntley finished higher than Herbert.
That means that if if any of the three quarterbacks who were voted into the Pro Bowl decide not to attend, Huntley would then attend the game and “make” the Pro Bowl.
Tyler Huntley is three guys away from changing plans/not attending for whatever reason they pick from being recognized as one of the best quarterbacks on earth.
The numbers actually make his performance seem better than if you’ve had to actually watch him play.
Huntley is “so good” that without Jackson this season, Baltimore has been held to 16 points or fewer in three straight games for the first time since 2000.
The Ravens have only scored two touchdowns in three games, including none in their past seven quarters.
To put this Huntley Pro Bowl crap into perspective, here is a quick list of AFC QBs he was “voted” better than:
Trevor Lawrence
Derek Carr
Tua Tagovailoa
Ryan Tannehill
Matt Ryan
Russell Wilson
Mac Jones
Kenny Pickett
Davis Mills
And this is the short list. We know Joe Flacco and Mike White are better than him, and AFC QBs of that ilk, so I saved us all some time and didn’t list guys like Jacoby Brissett or Teddy Bridgewater.
Supposedly Huntley received more votes than any quarterbacks in the AFC not named, Mahomes, Burrow, Herbert, or Lamar Jackson.
By any conceivable statistical metric, there are at least 15+ QBs in the AFC more deserving of this potential recognition.
Who is Tyler Huntley?
When Anthony Wright gets asked if he is Tyler Huntley, Anthony Wright gets offended.
Tyler Huntley makes Anthony Wright look like Steve McNair. Tyler Huntley is the black Kyle Boller.
But the big issue here isn’t Tyler Huntley. It is what a complete joke the Pro Bowl is.
And this FINALLY proves that Pro Bowl selections do not matter. To judge any player in the history of the NFL against players of another era, “x player made x Pro Bowls during his career.”
So how are Pro Bowlers selected? I should add for a game that doesn’t even exist anymore, which is further confirmation the recognition is complete BS.
How are Pro Bowlers selected?
Rosters are selected based on three groups of voting: fans, players and coaches. Each category’s vote represents one third to determine the 88 pro bowlers. The NFL is the only sports league to use fans, players and coaches voting to determine who makes the Pro Bowl.
How are Pro Bowl alternates determined?
Six players were named as alternates for the Pro Bowl, meaning that they would be on the shortlist to replace players who either are set to play in the Super Bowl or simply choose to not make the flight to Vegas. But curiously, the only one publicized currently is Huntley, via Schefter, via “league sources.”
So, I did more digging because this is absolute crap. I don’t have anything against Tyler Huntley other than this tweet I pumped out a week ago watching him struggle completing the most basic of forward passes – all the guy wants to do is run.
Usually I am not a Mike Florio fan but he did a deep dive that is even more cantankerous than I am being about this topic. Worth a read here. From the piece:
“The article includes this not-so-subtle sales pitch: “Huntley is scheduled to be a free agent this offseason and he will continue his attempt Saturday to prove his value to Baltimore and other teams. Should some of the top quarterbacks back out and Huntley wind up going to the Pro Bowl, his offseason value could be further boosted.”
First of all, there is no Pro Bowl, just a series of made-for-TV events. It’s hard to see how Huntley’s value as a football player would be “boosted” in any way if he gets an invitation to participate in a bunch of non-football stuff.
Second, and far more importantly, Huntley won’t be a free agent after the season, not in the way that term is always used. He’ll be restricted free agent.
Huntley didn’t play until December 4, the game during which Jackson suffered a knee injury. And while some players get votes based solely on reputation, how would Huntley muster enough support from fans, players, and coaches to essentially finish seventh among all AFC quarterbacks?”
I’m not going to make this an article about Adam Schefter taking payola from an agent in exchange for “earned media” – this is an article deriding the Pro Bowl and how a player’s noteworthiness being summarized by Pro Bowl appearances as buffoonery. It is a straight up popularity contest.
Since 2010, players of the two teams that advance to the Super Bowl do not play in the Pro Bowl and are replaced by alternate players.
Obviously either Allen or Mahomes will be in the Super Bowl. That makes Huntley a Pro Bowler an even more likely reality.
And I will just not live in a world where this is allowed. It’s like that time Oprah started giving away cars on her show. If an audience of 200 people all get “free cars” you really have to wonder about the motives and the craftsmanship of that car.
The metric that matters is unequivocally All-Pro selections.
Being named first-team or second-team All-Pro is more prestigious because All-Pro selection is much more exclusive than a Pro Bowl selection.
There can only be a certain number of All-Pro selections at a given position. All-Pro is league wide, with no required number per conference.
The NFL Pro Bowl has gone from one of the most prestigious awards in football, to one of the biggest jokes in sports. And players like Huntley are why.
People drop out all the time because they are hurt or don’t want to play, and now that players in the Super Bowl can’t participate in the Pro Bowl, players seem to get in by default because no one else can or wants to play.
High profile players such as Tom Brady drop out of the Pro Bowl every year, paving the way for the mediocre to get there shot in this all star game.
Calling Tyler Huntley mediocre would be an insult to players like Trent Dilfer and give him way more credit than he deserves, for things he has not achieved.
