Why is Tom Brady not in the Pro Bowl?

Tom Brady was voted into the 2022 Pro Bowl for his impressive numbers during the 2021 NFL season. He completed 485 passes for 5,316 yards and 43 touchdowns, all three of which lead the entire NFL this year. He also raked second this season with a 68.1 QBR and helped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers win 13 games, tied for the most in the NFL.

Unfortunately, Tom Brady claims he is dealing with a shoulder injury and will therefore be skipping the Pro Bowl. He officially announced his retirement earlier this week, so it may be more about that than an actual injury, but nevertheless he claims a shoulder issue is the reason for his absence.

Brady was selected to join Aaron Rodgers and Kyler Murray as the three quarterbacks representing the NFC in the 2022 Pro Bowl. Rodgers was voted the starter for the NFC while Brady would serve as the second quarterback on the depth chart. Unfortunately, the conference needed to make some changes to their quarterback line up.

Rodgers also announced that he would not be participating in the Pro Bowl because of a foot injury that bothered him for the majority of the 2021 season. He was replaced by Kirk Cousins on the roster. That would have meant that Brady would have taken over as the starting quarterback on February 6th, if he hadn't also chosen to sit out the game this year.

Skipping the Pro Bowl is not uncommon for many NFL players, including Brady. Despite being selected to the Pro Bowl 15 times in his career, Brady has not participated in the game since 2005. It has sometimes conflicted with his ten Super Bowl appearances, requiring an absence from the Pro Bowl, but other times he has simply chosen not to attend for one reason or another.

Who will replace Tom Brady in the 2022 NFL Pro Bowl?

Quarterbacks Tom Brady and Russell Wilson

Russell Wilson is the quarterback who has been chosen to replace Tom Brady on the NFC roster for the 2022 Pro Bowl. In 14 games this season, Russell Wilson completed 65 percent of his passes for 3,113 yards and 25 touchdowns with just six interceptions. He finished the season strong, throwing nine touchdowns and zero interceptions across the final four games.

Wilson will be the NFC's third quarterback when the 2022 Pro Bowl takes place on Sunday, February 6th at 3:00 PM ET at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.