Deshaun Watson, Kyler Murray, Jamal Adams and Derrick Henry will be among the real-life participants controlling the AFC and NFC in the virtual Pro Bowl using Madden 21 on Sunday.
Watson, Henry, Snoop Dogg and Keyshawn Johnson will represent the AFC. Murray, Adams, Bubba Wallace and Marshawn Lynch will represent the NFC.
Each player will play for one 5-minute quarter — exact head-to-head matchups have not been determined — while playing from their homes using the official AFC and NFC Pro Bowl rosters. The Pro Bowl will be hosted by Charissa Thompson and Michael Strahan at 5 p.m. ET and will be streamed on the EA Madden NFL Twitch channel and the NFL’s YouTube, Twitter and Facebook platforms.
“We’ll be taking the Pro Bowl to the virtual world of Madden this weekend and I can’t wait to do it big with football fans in my favorite game,” Snoop Dogg said in a media release explaining the particulars of the game. “I’m a Madden NFL star. So Kyler and Marshawn better watch out, my team is comin’ in to win that championship title for the AFC.”
Streamers Ninja, FaZe Swagg, AustinShow and AMP will also have watch parties on their streaming channels during the Madden Pro Bowl game.
It is part of a day of celebration of the Pro Bowl honorees in place of an actual game, which the NFL called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the game, ESPN and ABC will have a Pro Bowl celebration at 3 p.m., including interviews with players and highlights from the NFL Pro Bowl VERZUZ from earlier in the week.
NFL Network will air the virtual Pro Bowl game at 8 p.m. Sunday and 12:30 a.m. Monday.