NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell "isn't ready to make" Orlando the Pro Bowl's permanent home despite seeing this weekend's festivities there as "very positive," according to Jenna Laine of ESPN.com. Orlando is "under contract to host the event next year with a third-year option" for '19. Goodell said, "We go one year at a time." He said he told Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, "We're really excited, the way the fans have reacted favorably and the community has really embraced it. This is a special night for us" (ESPN.com, 1/30). In Orlando, George Diaz notes the Pro Bowl had a few "hiccups like parking-lot traffic leading to parking lots hours before the game and overly crowded concession stands, especially the NFL Shop where the wait looked to be an hour." But otherwise, "good times all around." Diaz: "This is the perfect place for the Pro Bowl and why the NFL is locked in for at least another year" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 1/30). NFL.com's Conor Orr noted the "functionality of a Pro Bowl in Orlando was pretty seamless." The Disney tie-in made "plenty of sense given how many young fans were dotting the fields each workout and lining the bleachers during the Pro Bowl Skills Showdown." Camping World Stadium was "close to full at kickoff." Orr: "This has always been, and always will be, an event driven by the younger crowd and it fits nicely into what some locals told me was a down time in theme park attendance" (NFL.com, 1/29).
THE GOOD & THE BAD: ESPN.com's Walker & Laine note the game had its "share of compelling moments." From "goal-line stands to a dynamic interception return" by Seahawks CB Richard Sherman, these "moments were the kind that could benefit the Pro Bowl" (ESPN.com, 1/30). BLEACHER REPORT's Gary Davenport writes the players "actually put forth something resembling effort. And it showed" (BLEACHERREPORT.com, 1/30). But the AP's Terrance Harris wrote the game "mostly lacked spectacular play on either side" (AP, 1/29). YAHOO SPORTS' Ben Rohrbach wrote, "What must the league be thinking after watching what unfolded in Orlando?" Fans got a game that "came down to the final minute -- and still wasn't all that interesting." Rohrbach: "Supposedly, there was a sellout crowd of 60,834 on hand to start the game, but by the second half, attendance was sparse" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 1/29).
STRAIGHT CASH HOMIE: PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Mike Florio wrote even without the best players "putting forth the best effort, the game will indeed survive because it makes money for the league and its partners." And there is "nothing wrong with that." The players have "made it through months of practices and games healthy enough to suit up one more time." But they "shouldn’t be asked to do it again." Florio: "Name the team, have a dinner, give them a plaque, and just be done with it" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 1/28).
