Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell, wide receiver Antonio Brown, center Maurkice Pouncey, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, linebacker Lawrence Timmons have been selected to the 2015 Pro Bowl team, announced tonight by the NFL. The Steelers are sending multiple players to the Pro Bowl for the 14th straight season and for the 23rd time in the last 26 seasons.
The Pro Bowl will be played Sunday, January 25, 2015, at University of Phoenix Stadium in Phoenix, Arizona, and will be televised live on ESPN at 8 p.m. (ET). For the second time ever, the Pro Bowl is "unconferenced," so players were selected without regard to conference by a combined voting of fans, players and coaches.
For the second consecutive year, players will be assigned to teams by a Pro Bowl Draft.
Bell, one of the most dynamic running backs in Steelers history, has been voted to the Pro Bowl for the first time in his NFL career. His 2,115 yards from scrimmage in 2014 is a new single-season Steelers record and are the second-most in the NFL. He has rushed for 1,341 yards and eight touchdowns while setting single-season franchise records for running backs with 77 receptions for 774 yards and has added three touchdown catches. He is one of four players in NFL history to record at least 1,300 rushing and 750 receiving yards in the same season: Marshall Faulk, Steven Jackson and Brian Westbrook. Bell ranks second in the NFL with 1,341 rushing yards – tied for the fifth-most in a season in team history and leads the NFL with 111 total first downs. Bell is just the second player in team history to record 100 yards from scrimmage in 12 games of a season and became just the second player in NFL history to eclipse 200 yards from scrimmage in three consecutive games, joining Walter Payton (1977). Since making his NFL debut in Week 4 of the 2013 season, Bell leads the NFL with 3,374 yards from scrimmage.
Brown, will be making his second consecutive Pro Bowl appearance and the third of his NFL career (2012, '14-15). The fifth-year wide receiver leads the NFL with Steelers' single-season records of 122 receptions and 1,570 receiving yards to go along with 12 touchdown catches. He leads the league in receptions for first downs (80) and 10-plus catch games (4) and is one of three players to average 100.0 yards or more per game in 2014. Brown became the fourth player in NFL history to record 110 catches in back-to-back seasons in 2013-14, joining Jerry Rice (1994-95), Cris Carter (1994-95) and Wes Welker (2007-09, '11-12) and his 122 receptions in 2014 are tied for the fourth-most on the NFL's single-season chart.
Pouncey, the anchor of Pittsburgh's offensive line, has been selected to the Pro Bowl for the fourth time in his NFL career (2011-13, '15). Pouncey has helped block for a Steelers' rushing offense to gain an average of 114.9 rushing yards per game – the sixth-best mark in the AFC – and the second-best offensive unit with an average of 415.4 yards per game in 2014. The fifth-year center has started each of his 61 career games played.
Roethlisberger has been selected to the Pro Bowl for the third time in his NFL career (2008, '12, '15). He has established Steelers single-season franchise records for completions (384) and passing yards (4,635) in 2014, while adding 30 passing touchdowns and a 103.8 passer rating. Roethlisberger has registered a 100.0 or better passer rating in 10-of-15 games in 2014 – a franchise record – and tied for the NFL lead – along with eight 300-yard games. In Week 8, Roethlisberger threw for a single-game franchise record of 522 yards – tying as the fourth-most in NFL history. He set an NFL record for the most passing touchdowns (12) in back-to-back games (Weeks 8-9).
Timmons, the leading tackler on the Steelers' defense in 2014, will be making his first trip to the Pro Bowl in his NFL career. Through Week 16, Timmons' team-best 121 combined tackles (80 solo) are third-most in the AFC and eighth overall in the NFL. Timmons is a member of a defensive unit that has held opponents to an average of 99.3 rushing yards per game – the fourth-fewest among AFC teams (sixth in the NFL). Timmons has eclipsed 100 tackles for the third consecutive season in 2014 and for the fourth time in his eight-year NFL career.
