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When the Seattle Seahawks won the AFC Championship on Sunday, that meant that their controversial cornerback Richard Sherman would be busy the next couple weeks. With Sherman having the Super Bowl to prep for it opened up a roster spot for the Pro Bowl, and Chicago's Tim Jennings was pegged to replace him.
Jennings had four interceptions including two returned for touchdowns. He added 57 tackles and 3 forced fumbles. Tim Jennings took on the #1 CB role when Charles Tillman went down, and he even shadowed the other teams' top wide out.
In back-to-back victories late in the season, Jennings helped hold Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant to two receptions for 12 yards and Browns wideout Josh Gordon to three catches for 67 yards.
This is Jennings' 2nd consecutive Pro Bowl selection, and he's the only Bears defender that was named to the team this year.
But he wasn't the only Bear named to the team on Monday.
Chicago Bears rookie offensive guard Kyle Long was picked to replace injured San Francisco 49ers guard Mike Iupati, who broke his ankle on Sunday.
Long started every game for the Bears in 2013 and he brought a little nasty back to the Chicago O-Line. He may play the game with an edge, but he's a kid that gets it.
"I'm extremely humbled and honored to be able to represent the Chicago Bears in Hawaii," Long told ChicagoBears.com. "It's just a tremendous honor. I'm extremely excited to get over there and spend some time with the greats of the game."
"None of this would be possible had it not been for the guys around me, the veterans, the coaching staff, [coordinator] Aaron Kromer, [general manager] Phil Emery for giving me a chance and bringing me in here, and the fans for rallying around our team,"
Jennings and Long will join wide outs Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery, and running back Matt Forte.
The new format of the Pro Bowl will include a "Draft" where Jerry Rice and Deion Sanders will pick their teams. No more AFC vs NFC, and the draft will be on Wednesday, January 22nd, at 7PM Central on the NFL Network.
