A record 55 million All-Star votes were cast by fans on NFL.com this year in balloting for the 2004 Pro Bowl, the NFL announced today. Tennessee Titans quarterback STEVE MC NAIR led all NFL All-Stars with 896,189 votes.
Kansas City Chiefs running back PRIEST HOLMES (894,403) ranked second overall with Indianapolis Colts quarterback PEYTON MANNING (854,259), Minnesota Vikings wide receiver RANDY MOSS (834,240), and Kansas City Chiefs tight end TONY GONZALEZ (802,840) rounding out the top five.
Players and coaches vote on December 15-16. The squads will be announced December 18 on the 2004 Pro Bowl Selection Show on ESPN.
The consensus ballots of NFL fans, players and coaches each count one-third towards determining the 43-man rosters that will represent the American and National conferences on February 8 at Aloha Stadium in Hawaii.
The NFL is the only professional sports league that combines voting by fans, players and coaches in determining its all-star teams. The league became the first professional sports league to offer online voting in 1995.
The Pro Bowl, the 25th to be played in Honolulu, Hawaii, will be televised live on ESPN at 7:30 PM ET (2:30 PMHT) on February 8.
Sponsored by Motorola and AT&T Wireless, fans were also able to cast votes at more than 1,000 AT&T Wireless stores nationwide this year. For the first time in Pro Bowl voting, fans were offered "TEXTdown," a wireless balloting option that gave fans the chance to vote on their Motorola handsets via AT&T Wireless service for their favorite players in the quarterback, running back, wide receiver, defensive end, outside linebacker and cornerback positions.
All fans who voted through "TEXTdown" and at participating AT&T Wireless stores were automatically entered for a chance to win one of four trips for two to the Pro Bowl in Motorola's "Hawaiian Vacation" sweepstakes. The winners will be announced December 18 on the 2004 Pro Bowl Selection Show on ESPN.
Listed below are the top 10 offensive and defensive vote-getters, the top five rookie vote-getters and the players with the most votes at each position:
NFL ALL-STAR TOP-10 OFFENSIVE & DEFENSIVE VOTE-GETTERS
| **TOP-TEN OFFENSIVE** | ||
| **Pos.** | **Name, Team** | **Votes** |
| QB | Steve McNair, Titans | 896,189 |
| RB | Priest Holmes, Chiefs | 894,403 |
| QB | Peyton Manning, Colts | 854,259 |
| WR | Randy Moss, Vikings | 834,240 |
| TE | Tony Gonzalez, Chiefs | 802,840 |
| RB | Ahman Green, Packers | 798,802 |
| WR | Marvin Harrison, Colts | 769,782 |
| WR | Torry Holt, Rams | 767,165 |
| RB | Jamal Lewis, Ravens | 677,095 |
| RB | Stephen Davis, Panthers | 669,934 |
| **TOP-TEN DEFENSIVE** | ||
| **Pos.** | **Name, Team** | **Votes** |
| LB | Ray Lewis, Ravens | 343,480 |
| DE | Simeon Rice, Buccaneers | 302,589 |
| DE | Jevon Kearse, Titans | 269,365 |
| DE | Shaun Ellis, Jets | 264,005 |
| CB | Patrick Surtain, Dolphins | 253,241 |
| DE | Michael Strahan, Giants | 245,842 |
| CB | Dré Bly, Lions | 242,369 |
| DE | Mike Rucker, Panthers | 233,195 |
| **IL** | **Richard Seymour, Patriots** | **231,832** |
| LB | Brian Urlacher, Bears | 210,668 |
NFL ALL-STAR TOP-FIVE ROOKIE VOTE-GETTERS
| **Pos.** | **Name,Team** | **Votes** |
| WR | Anquan Boldin, Cardinals | 419,714 |
| LB | Nick Barnett, Packers | 185,307 |
| CB | Terence Newman, Cowboys | 88,838 |
| CB | Marcus Trufant, Seahawks | 63,957 |
| WR | Andre Johnson, Texans | 57,885 |
AFC LEADING VOTE-GETTERS
| **Pos.** | **Name, Team** | **Votes** |
| QB | Steve McNair, Titans | 896,189 |
| RB | Priest Holmes, Chiefs | 894,403 |
| FB | Jerald Sowell, Jets | 244,922 |
| WR | Marvin Harrison, Colts | 769,782 |
| TE | Tony Gonzalez, Chiefs | 802,840 |
| T | Willie Roaf, Chiefs | 187,399 |
| G | Will Shields, Chiefs | 183,574 |
| C | Kevin Mawae, Jets | 116,409 |
| K | Mike Vanderjagt, Colts | 503,988 |
| KR | Dante Hall, Chiefs | 473,438 |
| Pos. | Name, Team | Votes |
| DE | Jevon Kearse, Titans | 269,365 |
| IL | Richard Seymour, Patriots | 231,832 |
| OLB | Sam Cowart, Jets | 169,517 |
| ILB | Ray Lewis, Ravens | 343,480 |
| CB | Patrick Surtain, Dolphins | 253,241 |
| SS | Ed Reed, Ravens | 151,540 |
| FS | Brock Marion, Dolphins | 89,623 |
| P | Shane Lechler, Radiers | 396,735 |
| ST | Larry Izzo, Patriots | 95,010 |
| **Pos.** | **Name, Team** | **Votes** |
| QB | Daunte Culpepper, Vikings | 587,898 |
| RB | Ahman Green, Packers | 798,802 |
| FB | Richie Anderson, Cowboys | 206,924 |
| WR | Randy Moss, Vikings | 834,240 |
| TE | Jeremy Shockey, Giants | 594,563 |
| T | Orlando Pace, Rams | 157,365 |
| G | Larry Allen, Cowboys | 192,302 |
| C | Mike Flanagan, Packers | 143,655 |
| K | Jeff Wilkins, Rams | 377,182 |
| KR | Brian Westbrook, Eagles | 109,340 |
| Pos. | Name, Team | Votes |
| DE | Simeon Rice, Buccaneers | 302,589 |
| IL | Warren Sapp, Buccaneers | 186,088 |
| OLB | Derrick Brooks, Buccaneers | 108,379 |
| ILB | Brian Urlacher, Bears | 210,668 |
| CB | Dré Bly, Lions | 242,369 |
| SS | Corey Chavous, Vikings | 196,791 |
| FS | Brian Russell, Vikings | 174,427 |
| P | Todd Sauerbrun, Panthers | 286,345 |
| ST | Ike Reese, Eagles | 60,668 |
