Troy Polamalu, one of 3 strong safeties selected to the Pro Bowl last month, will not be attending after all due to an injury. Many players cite a new “injury” as a reason for declining to go to the Pro Bowl, but ultimately, the team’s medical staff has to sign off on it. There have been no reports of an injury to Troy, and he saw more snaps this year than he has since 2008. He’s probably nursing a minor injury of some sort though, and will be starting his off-season workout regimine in no time.

Polamalu’s absence adds yet another Cleveland Browns player to the Pro Bowl roster. Browns Safety T.J. Ward will take Troy’s place in Hawaii. Antonio Brown is now the only player representing the Steelers in the Pro Bowl this year.

The new Pro Bowl format is non-conferenced, and team captains will pick their rosters starting tonight on the NFL Network. This is an attempt to gain interest from fans, which has been extremely low as of late. I wonder if the NFL has toyed with the idea of having viewers vote on the plays via social media…sort of like a live action Madden. It would probably get more fans interested in the event, though, I’m not sure players would be thrilled about it.