The top 10 performances by Jets players in the Pro Bowl

It’s Pro Bowl weekend this weekend, although actually it’s arguably more likely to be considered Senior Bowl weekend by most NFL fans, because the NFL’s annual all-star showcase has become increasingly insignificant.

Like most all-star formats, the novelty has worn off and (perfectly justifiable) injury precautions have further diluted things to the point where the NFL have opted to forego the game altogether this time and run a series of fan-friendly events and challenges instead.

Whether or not that freshens things up, it’s the end of an era, although it could be said that the era where the Pro Bowl game itself used to matter has already ended long ago. Bragging rights have become a lot less important than player safety given the money now involved - and players move around so much these days, you never get many fresh matchups anyway.

This is perhaps a good time to draw the line under the history of the Pro Bowl and Jets players’ participation in it. So, we present for you today the top performances by a Jets player in Pro Bowl history:

10 - Curtin Martin

Perhaps surprisingly, Curtis Martin only represented the Jets three times in a Pro Bowl and didn’t have that much success. His best game saw him rush eight times for 44 yards and a score in 2001. That touchdown - a four yard run - was the go-ahead score in an eventual 38-30 Jets win. John Riggins actually had the most rushing yards as a Jet in a Pro Bowl (47) and it’s also worth noting that Chris Ivory had 71 yards on just four touches (three of them catches) in 2015.

9 - Mo Lewis

Lewis went to his third straight Pro Bowl in 2000 and didn’t actually register a single defensive tackle. However, he still made an impact with a pass break-up, a special teams tackle and this interception.

8 - Erik McMillan

Safety Erik McMillan made two Pro Bowl appearances in the late eighties and was tied for the team lead with seven tackles in the 1988 game, adding a pass break-up. One fun stat that underlines what an effective playmaker McMillan was is that only six offensive players scored more touchdowns for the Jets in his first four years with the team than McMillan’s seven.

7 - John Abraham

Back in the days where sacking a quarterback in the Pro Bowl wasn’t frowned upon, John Abraham put up 1.5 sacks and also stuffed a run in the backfield in the 2002 game. The half-sack came just two plays after his sack and saw him impressively blow by Jon Runyan on an outside speed rush.

6 - Darrelle Revis

Only three players have represented the Jets in more Pro Bowls than Darrelle Revis and all three of them are offensive linemen. Clearly this was a player who proved his ability to cover Pro Bowl-level players during his career. His first appearance in 2008 saw him register five defensive tackles, a special teams tackle and an interception.

5 - Joe Klecko

Joe Klecko played in four Pro Bowls with his best performance coming at the end of the 1981 season. Klecko had a run stuff and two sacks, including this strip sack which his teammate Mark Gastineau recovered and returned down to the goal line to set up an important touchdown in the eventual 16-13 AFC win.

4 - Wesley Walker

Wesley Walker’s best Pro Bowl performance was at the end of the 1982 season when he caught five passes for 68 yards. This included the opening touchdown of the game, a 34-yard pass from Dan Fouts. Other than Martin’s touchdown mentioned earlier, that’s the only other touchdown scored by a Jets player in Pro Bowl history.

3 - Jamal Adams

Adams’ first Pro Bowl in 2018 saw him become the only Jets player ever to record a sack and an interception in a Pro Bowl. The player he intercepted was Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen, which perhaps sums up how serious the Pro Bowl became in recent seasons.

2 - Keyshawn Johnson

Keyshawn Johnson had the best output by a Jets’ runner or receiver when he racked up 88 yards on seven catches in 1998. Six of the seven catches went for a first down, including four third down conversions which proved valuable in a 23-10 win. However, he didn’t manage to help his teammate Vinny Testaverde from throwing three interceptions. He did add a special teams tackle though.

1 - Mark Gastineau

Having had a sack in each of the three previous Pro Bowls, Mark Gastineau arguably had one of the most impressive performances of his career in the 1984 Pro Bowl. After posting an NFL-record 22 sacks in the regular season, Gastineau opened the scoring by my making a play against the run as he stuffed Eric Dickerson in the end zone for a safety. He ended up with eight tackles, four sacks and two forced fumbles as he unsurprisingly walked away with the MVP award.