By Paul Bowman, Sports Talk Philly Editor
The Rams moving on to the Super Bowl proved to be some good news for one Eagle on Monday morning.
Kicker Jake Elliott was announced as a new selection for the Pro Bowl event next weekend.
The kicker, who many Philadelphia fans felt was snubbed in the fan voting earlier this year, will take the place of Matt Gay of the Rams. Of course, Gay is unable to attend the Pro Bowl as he will be preparing for a much bigger game.
IT’S GOOOOD!@jake_elliott22 has been named to the Pro Bowl after replacing Matt Gay, who is unable to participate due to the Super Bowl.#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/AKMHt9YPlx
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) January 31, 2022
Elliott becomes the beneficiary, being named to his first ever Pro Bowl.
The fifth-year player had a very poor season in 2020, but responded with his best season as a pro in 2021.
He made 30 of 33 field goal attempts (90.9%) and nailed all 44 of his extra point attempts this season. Not only is that the most field goal he’s kicked in a season and the most extra points he kicked in a season, but it is the first year he did not miss an extra point and the 90.9% make percentage on field goals is more than five points higher than his previous best (84.6% – 2019).
Just one year ago, fans were angry at Howie Roseman for signing Elliott to a new deal, seeing his cap hit as dead weight to the team, but the Memphis product was certainly able to turn that round quickly, presenting a great example of how Philadelphia fans want their players to respond to criticism.
The Pro Bowl will take place this Sunday, February 6th, at 3 pm. The game will be played in Las Vegas this year.