Miami (AFP) – Dallas Cowboys rookie quarterback Dak Prescott vows his National Conference stars will defeat their American Conference counterparts in Sunday’s NFL Pro Bowl, commenting after workouts for the annual all-star clash.
The game, to be staged at Orlando, Florida, had been two teams of players picked by retired stars for the past three seasons but this year reverts to the traditional format pitting squads from opposite conferences.
Players from the Super Bowl contenders, the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons, do not take part in the Pro Bowl, which serves as a final tuneup for fans ahead of next week’s championship spectacle at Houston, Texas.
The Nationals (NFC) own a 22-21 overall edge in the Pro Bowl rivalry, one NFC starter Prescott promises to extend.
“The NFC will win,” Prescott said.
Prescott will have fellow Cowboys rookie Ezekiel Elliott and Dallas receiver Dez Bryant alongside him on the NFC squad, which also features New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees and New York Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jnr.
“It’s humbling,” Prescott said. “I was training a year ago. It’s definitely a humbling experience and exciting. It helps tremendously just to be around these guys. It’s great to pick these guys’ brains. It’s a great moment.”
Prescott has been especially focused on Brees, who led the NFL with 5,208 passing yards this season. The 38-year-old veteran of 16 NFL campaigns completed 471 of 673 passes (70 percent) with 37 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
“I’m watching him walk off the field, watching him tie his shoes — I’m trying to learn everything I can,” Prescott said.
Prescott’s debut season wasn’t bad, leading the Cowboys to the top seed in the NFC playoffs by completing 311 of 459 tosses for 3,667 yards and 23 touchdowns with only four interceptions, although Dallas lost to Green Bay in the NFC semi-finals.
The American Conference counters with some star power of its own as Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger and Kansas City starter Alex Smith quarterback a lineup featuring Denver receivers Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders plus Miami receiver Jarvis Landry and running back Jay Ajayi.
From 1980 to 2016, the Pro Bowl was played in Honolulu for all but two years. But last June, the NFL announced a multi-year deal to leave Hawaii for Orlando.
Special rules are used to make the contest safer, including no kickoffs — teams start at their own 25-yard line each period or after scores — and limitations on defensive alignments.
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