A pair of New England Patriots teammates led their respective position groups in fan voting for the 2022 Pro Bowl.
The final voting tallies, which were announced Monday, had J.C. Jackson topping the charts among AFC cornerbacks and Joe Cardona receiving the most votes of any AFC long snapper.
Overall, the Patriots received the fourth-most Pro Bowl fan votes, trailing the Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers. Fan voting makes up one-third of the Pro Bowl voting process, with players and coaches also casting their votes.
Jackson certainly has enjoyed a Pro Bowl-caliber season thus far. In his first year without Stephon Gilmore alongside him, the 26-year-old ranks second in the NFL in interceptions with seven and first in passes defended with 20. He also boasts the lowest passer rating against (39.6) among all cornerbacks with at least 100 coverage snaps, per Pro Football Focus.
Over his last six games, Jackson has more passes defended (10) than receptions allowed (nine, per PFF).
“(Making the Pro Bowl would be) a huge accomplishment for me,” Jackson said last week. “I’ve never been in the Pro Bowl, so just making that, getting that acknowledgment, it’d mean a lot. It means I’m doing something good.”
Jackson’s NFL peers voted him as the league’s 49th-best player last offseason, two spots behind Gilmore. Currently playing on a restricted free agent tender worth $3.384 million, he’s set to cash in this offseason, either in unrestricted free agency or via the franchise tag.
High performance at the long snapper position is more difficult to quantify, but Cardona has been a key cog in the Patriots’ excellent field-goal operation this season. Kicker Nick Folk is 34-for-37 on field-goal tries, with all three misses coming from 50-plus.
Cardona has not missed a game since the Patriots drafted him in the fifth round out of Navy in 2015.
Pro Bowl rosters for the AFC and NFC will be unveiled Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET on NFL Network. This year’s Pro Bowl will be played in Las Vegas on Sunday, Feb. 6.
