Bear Digest

Why Pro Bowl snub for Bears CB Nahshon Wright is entirely unclear

The stats on players who made the NFC Pro Bowl team at cornerback are not conclusively worse than Nahshon Wright's, but they're also not conclusively better.
Gene Chamberlain|
Nahshon Wright during player introductions at Soldier Field before Saturday's game.
Nahshon Wright during player introductions at Soldier Field before Saturday's game. | David Banks-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

After Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright got denied a Pro Bowl berth, teammate Kevin Byard offered some advice.

Byard had just found out he had made the Pro Bowl at safety for a third time and like many Bears or Bears fans, he thought Wright deserved to be on the team.

“I already talked to him," Byard said. "I told him in my opinion, I think he has a first-team All-Pro honor on the way.

"My second year in the league when I went first-team All-Pro, I was a (Pro Bowl) second alternate. I talked to him about it, like 'I've been in your position, I've had years where I thought I should have got in and other guys got in.' I'm not necessarily saying those guys didn't have good years, but he has a first-team All-Pro that's on the way. In my opinion, that's honestly more important to me, or important to him for sure. He's had a great year and obviously he's disappointed, but at the end of the day, we have bigger and better things that we can still accomplish and that's what we're focused on.”

All-Pro is an honor given out by The Associated Press and it's not chosen by conference, so it's more exclusive. This hasn't been announced yet, though, and it doesn't until January.

Are the Bears who claimed a snub occurred right? Fans had voted Wright No. 1 at his position, but that's only one-third of the balloting. Coaches and players said otherwise.

It's really not clearly a snub because it all depends on criteria used. Wright probably did have a right to anticipate he could be on it. Then again, there's one number sticking out badly that might have cost him.

Wright has five interceptions, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles, all exceptional numbers. The five interceptions is tied for second in the league behind Byard. He also has very good 58.3% completion rate when targeted and a respectable passer rating against when targeted of 80.8.

However, that number would be even lower if Wright hadn't allowed six touchdown passes in coverage. The six allowed is per Stathead/Pro Football Reference. Pro Football Focus actually has him at seven TD passes allowed.

While this sounds bad, Jaycee Horn made the group of four NFC Pro Bowl cornerbacks and allowed the same amount of TDs, six. And PFF gave him blame for seven the same as Wright.

Horn does have only a 70.9 passer rating against and 46.6% completions allowed.

He also has five interceptions.

So it's not clear-cut Horn over Wright is a snub.

Both Eagles cornerbacks on the team had better stats for basic pass defense than  Wright. Quinyon Mitchell had a 61.7 passer rating against and 42.7% completions allowed, although he didn't have an interception. DeJean had a 72.6 rating and , and 58.4% completions with two interceptions.

However, Seattle's Devon Witherspoon has a 91.2 passer rating against and 68.8% completions allowed. Neither number is better than Wright's figures and he has only one interception.

The AFC cornerbacks are all slightly better in numbers than Wright except for interceptions.

Basically, it comes down to how highly you value interceptions over touchdown passes allowed.

Wright gave up too many TDs to suit the coaches and players who voted. As a result, arguments can be made both ways and in that case it's not a snub. Snubs are reserved for cases when players obviously deserve the honor.

However, for Bears fans it is something to remember next year when some Bears cornerback has a better passer rating against and completion percentage, but just doesn't have the interceptions.

It needs to work the same way for everyone.

If Bears fans really want to be angry over who made it on the Pro Bowl roster, they just need to look at Jerry Jones' Cowboys. The Bears had three Pro Bowl players and Dallas had six players on the NFC team.

Dallas had twice as many as the Bears, who bludgeoned them 31-14 at Soldier Field.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.