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For the first time in 11 years, the Vikings don’t have a single Pro Bowl selection.
The Vikings (7-8) were just one of three teams without an all-star this season, along with the New Orleans Saints (5-10) and the New York Jets (3-12). This is just the third team in franchise history without a Pro Bowl player, joining 2014 and 1983.
It’s bad company for this disappointing Vikings season that began with one of the NFL’s most expensive rosters — with over $300 million in cash spending — and a mantra that more was required to achieve this regime’s first playoff victory.
Coaches and players stumped for candidates such as defensive tackle Jalen Redmond and kicker Will Reichard, who finished third among NFC kickers in fan voting (the only results that are made public). But Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey got the nod over Reichard, who has made 27 of 29 field goals this year.
Reichard, Redmond and other Vikings are likely alternates, which fullback C.J. Ham has been every year behind the 49ers’ Kyle Juszczyk, who made another Pro Bowl this season.
For receiver Justin Jefferson, this is just the second time in his six-year career that he has missed the cut. A star-studded, 28th-ranked Vikings offense is still trying to get him over the 1,000-yard mark.
He is 83 yards shy entering Thursday’s Christmas Day kickoff against the Detroit Lions. His sixth consecutive 1,000-yard season would be a consolation prize, of sorts, for Jefferson.
