Pro Bowl snubs no match for allure of reputation

A reputation in the NFL is worth a lot -- like an all-expense paid trip to the Pro Bowl.

Brian Dawkins, you know now.

The same goes for you, Brett Favre.

Philip Rivers' stats are just plain better than Brett Favre's. (Getty Images)

Both of those players were named to the Pro Bowl Tuesday. Neither of them should be going.

They're going on reputation alone.

Take Dawkins. He's been a wonderful player in his career, maybe even a Hall of Fame player, but he hasn't been the best safety on his team. That goes to Quintin Mikell.

Yet Dawkins was named as a backup to the NFC team.

Favre is going for the AFC. He's had a so-so season and there's no way he should be on the team.

Philip Rivers should be. That's why he's the leader of my biggest Pro Bowl snubs for this season.

Rivers should be starting. He has 28 touchdown passes to lead the AFC. Favre has 21. Rivers has thrown 11 interceptions, while Favre has 17.

The San Diego quarterback also has a passer rating of 101.4, while Favre is at 86.5. Want more? Rivers has a yards-per-attempt average of 8.2. Favre is at 6.8, which shows that Rivers throws it down the field more.

Rivers got robbed.

Steve Slaton, RB, Texans

Slaton has 1,124 yards and eight rushing touchdowns. Miami's Ronnie Brown, who was picked for the team, has 827 yards and 10 rushing touchdowns. Slaton has a per-carry average of 4.9 and Brown is at 4.2.

When it comes to catching the ball, Slaton has 40 catches and a touchdown, while Brown has 24 catches for 218 yards,

It's not even close in my mind.

Ryan Clady, T, Broncos

The selection of tackles is always a pet peeve of mine. They never pick right tackles.

Both teams have three left tackles. OK, if that's the case, Clady should be one of those left tackles in the AFC.

As a rookie, he has been a wall in pass protection, giving up only a half-sack. But he lost out to Joe Thomas of the Browns. Thomas was terrible Monday night against the Eagles and hasn't played as well as he did as a rookie last season when he did go to the Pro Bowl.

John Abraham, DE, Falcons

He has 15½ sacks, the most by any defensive end. But he's not going to Hawaii.

The three defensive ends going from the NFC are Minnesota's Jared Allen, Carolina's Julius Peppers and Justin Tuck of the New York Giants.

I would have put Abraham in over Peppers, who has 12½ sacks. It might be splitting hairs, but it's hard to justify the leading sacker among defensive ends not being on the team.

Chad Greenway, LB, Vikings

I love Derrick Brooks. I really do.

But Chad Greenway should be going to the Pro Bowl instead of Brooks. Greenway has 101 tackles and 4½ sacks. Brooks has 63 tackles and no sacks. He does have one interception.

Brooks is good. Greenway has been slightly better.

Sorry, Derrick.

Carlos Rogers, CB, Redskins

There's no way Asante Samuel of the Eagles has been a better cover player than Rogers, who has bounced back from a severe knee injury in 2007 to become an elite corner.

Samuel, who signed with the Eagles as a free agent, has been good, but not great. He's going based on what he did in New England last season.

Quintin Mikell, S, Eagles

Mikell has 82 tackles, three interceptions and two sacks. Dawkins has 65 tackles, one interception and two sacks.

The difference is Dawkins is in his 13th season starting, while Mikell is in his second.

That's reputation, baby.