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4 former Wisconsin Badgers voted to NFL Pro Bowl, including rookie named as starter

The Wisconsin Badgers will again be well-represented in the 2026 NFL Pro Bowl, including a newcomer named as an all-star starter after his rookie season.
Lorin Cox|
Former Wisconsin Badgers wide receiver Chimere Dike (13) was voted to the NFL Pro Bowl as a starter for his work as a kick returner during his rookie season.
Former Wisconsin Badgers wide receiver Chimere Dike (13) was voted to the NFL Pro Bowl as a starter for his work as a kick returner during his rookie season. | Nick Wosika-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

The Wisconsin Badgers have a long-running streak of their former players appearing in the NFL Pro Bowl, with many of the expected names earning all-star honors.

But for the 2026 Pro Bowl Games, Wisconsin will have a new Badgers alum representing them as a starter.

The Pro Bowl rosters were announced Tuesday, and four former Badgers made the cut.

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As expected, star Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor is the starter for the AFC after spending most of the year as the league's leading rusher and a real contender for NFL MVP.

It's his third Pro Bowl selection in six seasons since leaving Wisconsin for the pros.

Joining him is another perennial Pro Bowl starter in the AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt.

His one breakout season as a starter for the Badgers has propelled an NFL career that has now seen eight-straight Pro Bowl appearances.

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Philadelphia Eagles inside linebacker Zack Baun made it back to the Pro Bowl for the second-straight year after a breakout season in 2024 that has carried over into 2025.

He was not voted in as a starter, though.

The surprise starter from Wisconsin was rookie wide receiver Chimere Dike, who was named to the Pro Bowl for his kick return ability.

He leads the NFL in kickoff return yards this season with 1,535, inlcuding a long of 71 yards, and he also has a league-leading two punt return touchdowns on the year.

Dike was the Badgers' lead kickoff and punt returner in his final season at Wisconsin in 2023 and continued returning punts during his last collegiate season at Florida before entering the NFL Draft.

If he can keep returning kicks at this high of a level, he can join the ranks of the other former Badgers who consistently spend a Sunday every winter hanging out with the top talents in the NFL at what is now a skills competition and not an actual football game.

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Lorin Cox
LORIN COX

Lorin Cox is the managing editor of Wisconsin Badgers on SI. He has been covering Badgers sports since 2014, when he was an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin. He previously wrote for the Wisconsin State Journal, NBC Sports Chicago and USA Today Sports Media Group, and he is a former analyst for Pro Football Focus.

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