Five Cleveland Browns Players Named to 2024 Pro Bowl, SIx More Named Alternates
The NFL announced the Pro Bowl rosters for the 2024 Pro Bowl Games tonight and five players from the Cleveland Browns have been selected to the roster. Myles Garrett, Joel Bitonio, David Njoku, Amari Cooper, and Denzel Ward have all been named to the roster for the event which will be held in Orlando, Florida the weekend before the Super Bowl. In addition, Corey Bojorquez, Ethan Pocic, Grant Delpit, Dustin Hopkins, Wyatt Teller, and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah have all been named as alternates. They will be selected if players ahead of them opt out for injury or the Super Bowl.
Garrett has been selected to his fifth Pro Bowl, missing only two seasons since entering the league in 2017. Garrett has 14 sacks and four forced fumbles on the season and is widely considered to be the favorite for the Defensive Player of the Year award. He is tied with DT/DE Bob Gain (five) and NT Michael Dean Perry (five) for the most Pro Bowl selections by a Browns defensive player. Garrett is the only player in the NFL to record at least 14 sacks in each of the past three seasons (2021-23) and the only player to record at least 10 sacks in each of the past six seasons (2018-23).
Bitonio’s selection is his sixth, he has been selected to the Pro Bowl every year since 2018. Bitonio has had a strong season for the Browns in 2023, anchoring an offensive line that has seen almost every starter sidelined with injury at one point or another. He is tied for the fourth-most selections in team history, trailing on Pro Football Hall of Famers T Joe Thomas (10), RB Jim Brown (9) and T/K Lou Groza (9). Bitonio is the first Browns guard to be named to six consecutive Pro Bowls since Pro Football Hall of Famer Gene Hickerson made six straight (1966-71).
David Njoku received his first Pro Bowl nod after a season that has been the strongest in his career to date. In 2023, Njoku has set career highs in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. He has also emerged as one of the most vocal leaders of the offense and a fan favorite. Njoku’s numbers are the fifth-most by a Browns tight end in a season and tied for the eighth-most by any Browns player in team history. He also leads the team with a career-high six receiving touchdowns. He is the first Browns tight end to make a Pro Bowl since Gary Barnidge in 2014.
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Amari Cooper makes his fifth trip to the Pro Bowl. This is Cooper’s first time making the roster as a member of the Cleveland Browns. He previously made it as a member of the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys. Cooper has 72 receptions for 1250 yards and five touchdowns. In addition to his 1,160 receiving yards last season, Cooper is the first Browns player to record back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons. In Week 16, he set a franchise single-game record with 265 receiving yards. He is the first Browns wide receiver to make a Pro Bowl since Jarvis Landry in 2019.
This is Denzel Ward’s third Pro Bowl, after making it his rookie season and again in 2021. Ward has missed 3 games for the Browns this season but his selection is representative of the outstanding play of the Browns defensive secondary throughout the 2023 season. He joins Frank Minnifield (four) and Hanford Dixon (three) as the only Browns corners to make at least three trips to the Pro Bowl. Ward has recorded two interceptions and 11 passes defensed while helping the Browns defense lead the NFL in several categories including total defense (266.6 yards per game) and passing defense (165.9 yards per game).
The NFL moved away from a traditional football game last year, replacing the contest with the Pro Bowl Games. In a press release, the NFL explained what contests will be involved in the games this year.
