December 28th update

Sportico wishes all of our readers a Merry Christmas! Now back to the world of sports!

Pro Bowl rosters announced

• The NFL announced the rosters for its annual All-Star game, the Pro Bowl, on Tuesday and to no one's surprise, the best teams got the lion's share of the representees. The San Francisco 49ers have ridden a dominant defense to a likely #2 seed in the NFC and got 8 selections, a mark equaled by the New England Patriots and just missed by the Baltimore Ravens and Green Bay Packers who each got 7.
• Was there controversy? A bit but not as much as in some years. Some people thought the rookie QB duo of Tim Tebow and Cam Newton should have made it over Philip Rivers and Eli Manning. Also Ndamukong Suh missed out and the Tennessee Titans did not have a single rep (incuding RB Chris Johnson, who might have made it on reputation alone if it were just a fan vote that determined the players). But without further ado, here are the rosters:

AFC:
Quarterbacks:
Tom Brady, New England
Philip Rivers, San Diego
Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh

Running backs:
Arian Foster, Houston
Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville
Ray Rice, Baltimore

Fullback:
Vonta Leach, Baltimore

Wide receivers:
A. J. Green, Cincinnati
Brandon Marshall, Miami
Mike Wallace, Pittsburgh
Wes Welker, New England

Tight ends:
Antonio Gates, San Diego
Rob Gronkowski, New England

Offensive tackles:
D'Brickashaw Ferguson, New York Jets
Jake Long, Miami
Joe Thomas, Cleveland

Guards:
Logan Mankins, New England
Brian Waters, New England
Marshal Yanda, Baltimore

Centers:
Nick Mangold, New York Jets
Maurkice Pouncey, Pittsburgh

Defensive ends:
Andre Carter, New England
Elvis Dumervil, Denver
Dwight Freeney, Indianapolis

Interior linemen:
Haloti Ngata, Baltimore
Richard Seymour, Oakland
Vince Wilfork, New England

Outside linebackers:
Tamba Hali, Kansas City
Von Miller, Denver
Terrell Suggs, Baltimore

Inside linebackers:
Ray Lewis, Baltimore
Derrick Johnson, Kansas City

Cornerbacks:
Champ Bailey, Denver
Johnathan Joseph, Houston
Darrelle Revis, New York Jets

Strong safety:
Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh

Free safeties:
Ed Reed, Baltimore
Eric Weddle, San Diego

Punter:
Shane Lechler, Oakland

Placekicker:
Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland

Kick returner:
Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh

Special teamer:
Matthew Slater, New England

NFC:
Quarterbacks:
Drew Brees, New Orleans
Eli Manning, New York Giants
Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay

Running backs:
Matt Forte, Chicago
Frank Gore, San Francisco
LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia

Fullback:
John Kuhn, Green Bay

Wide receivers:
Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona
Greg Jennings, Green Bay
Calvin Johnson, Detroit
Steve Smith, Carolina

Tight ends:
Tony Gonzalez, Atlanta
Jimmy Graham, New Orleans

Offensive tackles:
Jermon Bushrod, New Orleans
Jason Peters, Philadelphia
Joe Staley, San Francisco

Guards:
Davin Joseph, Tampa Bay
Carl Nicks, New Orleans

Centers:
Ryan Kalil, Carolina
Scott Wells, Green Bay

Defensive ends:
Jared Allen, Minnesota
Jason Babin, Philadelphia
Jason Pierre-Paul, New York Giants

Interior linemen:
B.J. Raji, Green Bay
Jay Ratliff, Dallas
Justin Smith, San Francisco

Outside linebackers:
Lance Briggs, Chicago
Clay Matthews. Green Bay
DeMarcus Ware, Dallas

Inside linebackers:
Brian Urlacher, Chicago
Patrick Willis, San Francisco

Cornerbacks:
Carlos Rogers, San Francisco
Charles Tillman, Chicago
Charles Woodson, Green Bay

Strong safety:
Adrian Wilson, Arizona

Free safeties:
Dashon Goldson, San Francisco
Earl Thomas, Seattle

Punter:
Andy Lee, San Francisco

Placekicker:
David Akers, San Francisco

Kick return specialist:
Patrick Peterson, Arizona

Special teamer:
Corey Graham, Chicago


Of the players taken, here were 44 first-round picks, 10 second-round picks, seven third-round picks, five fourth-round picks, three sixth-round picks, two seventh-round picks and eight undrafted players.

Some other fun tidbits:

- All but two AFC picks on defense — defensive end Elvis Dumervil and safety Eric Weddle – are first-round picks.

- After the first and second rounds, there are more undrafted Pro Bowl players than any other round.

- Of the six running backs selected for the Pro Bowl, none were first-round picks.

- All four inside linebackers who made the Pro Bowl were first-round picks.


Wednesday Spotlight: Kevin Durant

• Oklahoma City Thunder Small Forward Kevin Durant (pictured above) is off to a strong start to the season, which surprises absolutely no one. After leading the league in scoring in each of the past two seasons, Durant scored 63 points in the first two games of the season (against Minnesota and Orlando). One of the league’s best young players, Durant was the second pick in the 2007 draft (a highly analyzed pick, as the Portland Trail Blazers selected oft-injured Center Greg Oden with the first overall pick).
• Prior to the NBA, Durant was a superstar freshman at the University of Texas. ESPN’s hyperbole prone analyst Dick Vitale called Durant the “most prolific offensive skilled big perimeter” player ever. Durant was named the player of the year for the 2006-07 season, becoming the first player to win the award as a freshman. One of the reasons he's so lethal is that he's got the shooting ability of a guard but is 6'9" and very athletic, making him difficult for any player to guard.
• The "Durantula" is the leader of the young Oklahoma City Thunder, one of the most entertaining and talented teams in the league that also features high flying PG Russell Westbrook, shot-blocking phenom Serge Ibaka and former Celtic defensive ace Kendrick Perkins. The Thunder are considered a contender for this year’s title, and thanks to smart moves from their front office, should be contenders for years to come.