The New Orleans Saints placed two players on the 2015 Pro Bowl Squad announced by the NFL on Tuesday – right guard Jahri Evans and tight end Jimmy Graham.
Evans, originally a fourth-round pick of the Saints in 2006 out of Bloomsburg, has earned his six consecutive All-Star berth. Evans' six overall selections are ranked second in franchise history among offensive linemen behind Pro Football Hall of Fame tackle William Roaf's seven. Evans has opened 141 contests at right guard for New Orleans and started all 15 games in 2014 for the NFL's top-ranked offense.
This is Graham's third career Pro Bowl selection and second consecutive. Appearing in all 15 games in 2014, he leads the team in receiving with 79 receptions for 835 yards (10.6 average) with 10 touchdowns. He's the only Saint to have three double-digit touchdown grab seasons. In his five-year career, Graham's totaled 380 receptions for 4,698 yards (12.4 average) with 51 touchdowns to rank fourth in club record books in receiving, fifth in receiving yardage and second in touchdown grabs. He's only the seventh player in league history to have at least 50 career scoring grabs by his fifth NFL season.
The Pro Bowl players are determined by the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches. Each group's vote counts one-third toward determining the 86 All-Star players who will be selected in the Pro Bowl Draft. Two additional "need" players will be chosen by each head coach and must be long snappers.
Players will later be assigned to teams through the Pro Bowl Draft during the week leading up to the game, which will also air on NFL Network.
The 2015 Pro Bowl will be played on Sunday, January 25, 2015 and televised live on ESPN at 7 p.m. from University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona, site of Super Bowl XLIX.
The Pro Bowl will be "unconferenced" for the second consecutive year.
Last season, the familiar AFC vs. NFC match-up that had existed since 1971 was eliminated. Instead, players are selected without regard to conference in voting by fans, coaches and players.
Fans interested in purchasing Pro Bowl game tickets may go to www.nfl.com/probowlonsale for more information.
Associated Press photos from the 2014 Pro Bowl.