The rosters for the 2008 Pro Bowl were just announced, and a quick scan reveals that your Houston Texans have but one player on the roster--DeMeco Ryans. A hearty congrats to DeMeco; he deserved a trip last year when he got snubbed, and he certainly deserves the starting nod he received this year (torn knee ligament and all).
Given the stupendous seasons being had by several other Texans, why is DeMeco the only one packing for Hawaii? Sure, Mario Williams, Kris Brown, and Will Demps (not bad for a dude who was signed off the street after the season started) were named "alternates" for the AFC squad. That's better than nothing, I guess. And but for his knee injury, there's little doubt that Andre Johnson would be going too. But let's take a look at who beat out Super Mario, Brown, and Demps.
AFC DE
Jared Allen
Kyle Vanden Bosch
Jason Taylor
Of those three, Vanden Bosh is the one whose selection over Super Mario floors me the most. Remember--this isn't MLB; there's no rule that every roster has to be represented. You just can't tell me that Vanden Bosch is more deserving than Mario Williams. And if the voting had stayed open for a day or so after Thursday's virtuoso performance, I have to believe Super Mario is in the top three.
AFC K
Rob Bironas
Kris Brown has had a great season, but I can't really take exception to Bironas getting the nod here.
AFC FS
Ed Reed
With all due respect to Will Demps, I won't even begin to argue this.
In summation, Super Mario got an unabashed screw job; K. Brown deservedly lost a close call; and Will Demps should be ecstatic that Ed Reed might know who he is.