49ers and Seahawks help NFC West dominate NFL All-Pro Team
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| LBs NaVorro Bowman (front) and Patrick Willis lead a league-high seven 49ers on the NFL All-Pro team. (US Presswire) |
The NFC West was the laughingstock of the NFL two years ago. That was in 2010, when the division sent 7-9 Seattle to the playoffs, making the Seahawks the first team with a losing record to make the postseason.
Two years later, nobody's laughing. The NFL All-Pro Team was released Saturday, and the division with the most representatives is -- the NFC West. Ten of the 27 players named first team All-Pro were from the NFC West; the other seven divisions accounted for the other 17 players.
The Arizona Cardinals and St. Louis Rams combined for no All-Pro players, which means the 10 NFC West players came from two teams -- the Seahawks and 49ers.
San Francisco had a league-high six players named to the All-Pro team, including LBs Patrick Willis, NaVorro Bowman and Aldon Smith, G Mike Iupati, S Dashon Goldson and P Andy Lee.
"This type of acknowledgement only comes from hard work and a team-first mentality, which all six of these men exhibit on a daily basis," 49ers general manager Trent Baalke said. "They play the game the way it was meant to be played, and are very deserving of this honor,"
| The home of the Super Bowl | |||
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The Seahawks were second in the NFL with four All-Pro players, including RB Marshawn Lynch, C Max Unger, CB Richard Sherman and S Earl Thomas.
After making the All-Pro team, Sherman didn't seem too concerned with his Pro Bowl snub, "The Pro Bowl is taking three from each side, it's more of a popularity contest," Sherman said. "The All-Pro, you're the best at your position. It doesn't matter if you're a fifth-rounder or fourth-rounder or undrafted. If you play the best, you're All-Pro."
If the All-Pro team isn't enough to convince you that the NFC West might have been the best division in the league in 2012, maybe this will: Going into divisional playoff weekend, the NFC West was the only division with two teams still playing.
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