Something special: The Steelers will have seven players taking part in the Pro Bowl Games this week in Orlando, Florida, and for defensive tackle Cameron Heyward, he knows how special it is to be voted in.
Heyward is one of four Steelers players who were voted as starters for the Games, and while he won't take part in the seven-on-seven flag game on Sunday as it's skill position driven, he still understands how special it is to have players, coaches and fans select you as a starter.
"The honor is always a big thing," said Heyward. "It's an honor to be chosen amongst a really competitive defensive line group in the league. I have to make sure I represent."
And when it comes to representing, for Heyward that means holding true to the competitor he is. He will be participating in some of the skills challenges during the Pro Bowl Games and for him, it is a competition.
"Honestly, I'm very competitive," said Heyward. "It's hard for me to shut it down and just be teammates with everyone from other teams. The goal is to win in anything I do. Maybe we all converse a little bit. I don't want to give away secrets or anything. I've got to keep that, I don't want to call it hatred, but that anger toward those other teams. AFC North, you name it. I don't have a lot of love for anybody."
Heyward will be participating, along with Miles Killebrew, in Helmet Harmony, a game show to test players knowledge of their teammate, on the first night of the skills competition.
"It's going to be all about how well I know Miles," said Heyward. "It's a fun thing, but I've got to make sure I study up on Miles Killebrew and make sure I don't embarrass myself."
Black and gold in the house: The Pro Bowl Games officially get under way tonight, with a full lineup of fun activities as part of the Pro Bowl Games Skill show, which will air on ESPN at 7 p.m.
And the Steelers will be well represented at the Pro Bowl Games.
Kicker Chris Boswell, safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, and defensive tackle Cameron Heyward were voted to the Pro Bowl Games as starters. In addition, special teams ace Miles Killebrew, linebacker Patrick Queen, guard Isaac Seumalo and quarterback Russell Wilson were named as replacements. Linebacker T.J. Watt was also voted as a starter, but is not participating due to injury.
Boswell, who is making his second Pro Bowl appearance and his first since 2017, connected on an NFL high 41 of 44 field goal attempts this season (93.2%). He was also perfect on 35 extra point attempts. He made 13 field goals of 50 or more yards this season. He also led the NFL in points by a kicker (158) and field goal percentage (93.2, min. 35 FGA), and ranked second in field goals attempted (44) in 2024.
Fitzpatrick was selected to the Pro Bowl for the fifth time in his career. He started all 17 games in 2024, recording 96 tackles, including 62 solo stops. He had four passes defensed, an interception, which he returned 25 yards against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 16, and a forced fumble.
Heyward was selected to the Pro Bowl Games for the seventh time in his career. He also has been a team captain for 10 straight years. Heyward had one of his most consistent seasons in 2024, remaining healthy and starting 17 games. Heyward recorded 71 tackles, 35 of them solo stops, eight sacks, 12 tackles for a loss and 11 passes defensed.
This is the second straight year that Killebrew will participate in the Pro Bowl Games, after he was voted to the games last year. Killebrew, the Steelers special teams captain, had 13 special teams tackles, eight of them solo stops, which was tied for ninth most in the NFL this year.
Queen, who signed with the Steelers as an unrestricted free agent during the 2024 offseason, started all 17 games and the Wild Card game at inside linebacker. Queen, who was selected to the Pro Bowl Games in 2023 while with the Baltimore Ravens, finished the 2024 season with 129 tackles, 65 of them solo stops, and six tackles for a loss. He added seven passes defensed, two forced fumbles, one sack and one fumble recovery.
Seumalo is making his first Pro Bowl appearance. Seumalo appeared in 13 games in 2024, starting all of them, but missed four games as he started the season with a pectoral injury. He was part of an offensive line that helped the Steelers rank 11th overall in rushing yards with 2,166. According to Pro Football Focus, Seumalo allowed only two sacks, and one quarterback hit in 2024.
Wilson will be making his 10th Pro Bowl appearance (2012-15, 2017-21, 2024), which is tied for fifth-most among quarterbacks in NFL history. Wilson started the final 11 games of the 2024 season after coming back from a calf injury he suffered at the start of training camp. Wilson completed 214 of 336 passes (63.7%) for 2,482 yards and 16 touchdowns and five interceptions. He also had 43 rushes for 155 yards and two touchdowns.
Let the games begin: As part of the Pro Bowl Games, players will take part in skills competition as well as the seven-on-seven flag football game.
Below is a listing of what each of the Steelers players will be participating in, and the note below explains each of the activities.
Chris Boswell: Dodgeball, The Great Football Race
Minkah Fitzpatrick: Relay Race, NFL Flag Football Game
Cameron Heyward: Helmet Harmony, Tug-of-War
Miles Killebrew: Helmet Harmony, NFL Flag Football Game
Patrick Queen: Dodgeball, NFL Flag Football Game
Isaac Seumalo: Dodgeball, Tug-of-War
Russell Wilson: Passing the Test, NFL Flag Football Game
Scoring for the Pro Bowl Games works in the following way:
• The winning conference of each skill competition earns three points towards their team's overall score, with 33
points available across the 11 skills events.
• Points from the Flag game (four, 12-minute quarters played on Sunday) will be added to points earned from Skills competitions to determine the winning conference for the 2025 Pro Bowl Games.
• The winning conference at the conclusion of the Flag game will be crowned the winner of the Pro Bowl Games.
Schedule of events: The traditional Pro Bowl game has been replaced by the Pro Bowl Games, which includes the Skills Show and will culminate with an AFC vs. NFC Flag Game at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida on Sunday, February 2.
The Skills Show will air in Thursday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. on ESPN. In the first part of the two-day event, the AFC and NFC players will compete in the Pro Bowl Skills show, featuring skills challenges. This made-for-TV event takes place in the Nicholson Fieldhouse at the University of Central Florida, only on ESPN from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET.
The Pro Bowl Games Flag Football and Skills will air on Sunday, February 2 at 3 p.m. on ESPN and ABC from Camping World Stadium. It includes a 7-on-7 flag football game and more skills, including Tug-of-War, Punt Perfect, and the Great Football Race.
Thursday, Jan. 30:
• Passing The Test: Quarterbacks try to hit targets at various distances around the field worth different point values in 40 seconds. Before the challenge, each quarterback will select a Pro Bowl Games teammate to answer five trivia questions about current Pro Bowl players. For every correct answer, the quarterback gets an additional 10 seconds. The winner of the competition is the team with the quarterback who scores the most points.
• Satisfying Catches presented by SNICKERS®: One wide receiver, tight end and defensive back from each conference will compete in a challenge obstacle course, including catches from a jugs machine at three different distances, to test every aspect of catching a football. Each teammate will complete the course back-to-back with the lowest combined time winning the challenge.
• Relay Race: A simultaneous relay-style event where four players from each conference complete a 40-yard dash before handing a football to the next athlete on their team, continuing until the fourth and final leg crosses the finish line. The conferences will compete in three rounds, with the fastest team winning.
• Helmet Harmony: A game show to test player knowledge of their teammates, with every correct answer worth one point. The team with the most correct answers wins.
• Dodgeball presented by Bud Light: A three-round tournament of classic dodgeball featuring six teams of five players. Teams will be a mix of AFC offensive, defensive and special teams players competing against a mix of NFC offensive, defensive and special teams players.
Sunday, Feb. 2:
• Punt Perfect: Two players (one punter, one non-punter) from each conference punt from the 35-yard line, attempting to place as many punts as possible into a set of six buckets in the end zone. Each bucket is worth one point, with every fifth punt worth three points. The two players with the highest combined score will be the winners.
• The Great Football Race: Six players from each conference will face off in a relay race consisting of five different challenges, culminating with a sled push. The team to cross the finish line first wins.
• Tug-of-War: A five-on-five demonstration of teamwork, strength and strategy, and positioned above a foam pit, players are challenged to pull backwards on the rope, attempting to move the opposing team in their direction. The competition will be the best of three, and the winner who pulls the opposing team into the foam pit twice wins.
