For the first time ever, the NFL’s Pro Bowl will be taking place virtually.
The 2021 Pro Bowl Was supposed to be held in Las Vegas’ state of the art Allegiant Stadium, but the COVID-19 pandemic put at an end to those plans.
While the NFL is hopeful that there will be an in-person Pro Bowl for Las Vegas in 2022, this year’s event will take place using EA Sports’ Madden NFL 21 video game.
In fact, some are already calling it the “Madden Pro Bowl.”
Two teams of celebrities and players will be using the actual AFC and NFC Pro Bowl rosters while competing against each other in the safety of their own homes.
There are expected to be interviews and highlights of the actual players throughout the day.
Even though the idea of a virtual Pro Bowl is new, bettors will still be able to place wagers on the game.
With that being side, you can find a guide below about how the Madden Pro Bowl will work, as well as the betting information you need to know about.
General Pro Bowl Information
As mentioned before, this year’s Pro Bowl is being held virtually and will take place on Sunday, January 31 at 5 pm ET.
Encore performances will be available at 8 pm ET on the NFL Network.
With the game being played through a video game, the NFL is offering several ways that fan can watch the Virtual Pro Bowl, including:
- ABC, ESPN
- The NFL Network channel
- The NFL’s YouTube channel
- The NFL’s social media pages
- EA Sports Madden NFL Twitch stream
Michael Strahan and Charissa Thompson will be hosting the game so that the Virtual Pro Bowl will have some semblance of a regular game.
Popular video games streamers like Ninja and FaZe Swagg will also be making appearances.
The NFL announced each conference’s actual rosters back in December.
The AFC will be represented by players like Patrick Mahomes, Derrick Henry, and T.J. Watt. Meanwhile, the NFC team will bolster the likes of Aaron Rodgers, Alvin Kamara, and DeAndre Hopkins.
Both Pro Bowl teams are stacked with the NFL’s best players, but they will not be controlling themselves.
This week, the NFL announced which current and former players, as well as which celebrities, would be controlling each Pro Bowl team behind the screens.
AFC Pro Bowl Team
- Snoop Dogg, hip-hop legend
- Keyshawn Johnson, former NFL wide receiver
- Derrick Henry, Tennesse Titans running back
- Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans quarterback
NFC Pro Bowl Team
- Bubba Wallace, NASCAR driver
- Marshawn Lynch, former NFL running back
- Jamal Adams, Seattle Seahawks strong safety
- Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals quarterback
Each player will play one five-minute quarter of the game for their team, rather than everyone playing at the same time. There’s no word on what the matchups will be, so there is the possibility that we may see a celebrity take on a current player.
Pro Bowl Betting Odds & Information
Despite this being a virtual Pro Bowl, the AFC will be looking for their fifth straight victory at the NFL’s annual all-star game.
With that being said, Bovada has the AFC as the favorite to win the Virtual Pro Bowl at -220. They’re also listing the NFC’s odds at +155.
BetOnline is also taking the AFC team as the favorites at -260 while listing the NFC’s odds of winning the Pro Bowl at +200.
One thing that bettors have to remember is that they need to take into account each team’s video game experience and skill when wagering.
Just because the AFC roster has Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Deshaun Watson on it doesn’t mean they’re guaranteed to dominate if the person controlling them isn’t good at Madden.
Nevertheless, the AFC may be in luck because if anyone is a seasoned video game veteran, it’s Snoop Dogg.
Snoop Dogg has been playing Madden video games for decades and he often streams his games on Twitch. His teammate Deshaun Watson also streams video games.
On the NFC side, Kyler Murray is an avid Twitch streamer, and Marshawn Lynch has been known to play his fair share of video games as well.
With players’ in-game ratings and the participants’ video games skills being taken into account, the Virtual Pro Bowl may be one of the most unpredictable sports events to bet on in quite some time.
