NEW YORK, N.Y. - Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers are two wins away from a perfect regular season. They are also a perfect 10 when it comes to the Pro Bowl.
The Panthers led the NFL with 10 players selected for the All-Star game on Tuesday.
Newton was picked for the third time, and five of the quarterback's teammates were first-time selections, including cornerback Josh Norman and linebacker Thomas Davis.
"It's truly an honour to be selected to the Pro Bowl," Davis said. "All the hard work and dedication I've put into the game has paid off. I'm extremely excited and I couldn't be more thankful to the fans who took their time to vote me in, as well as my fellow players and coaches.
"To have 10 guys selected says a lot about our team. It says a lot about our fans and how highly they thought of us this season, and I think it says a lot about the way our season has gone. I'm excited and thankful to be part of the 10."
Joining them will be centre Ryan Kalil, who was picked for the fifth time, and linebacker Luke Kuechly, who earned his third selection.
Seattle, Arizona and New England each had seven players selected. Cincinnati and Kansas City each had five players.
Leading the way for the Seahawks was quarterback Russell Wilson, who was the only member of the offence picked. The rest of the selections were defensive end Michael Bennett, safety Kam Chancellor, special teamer Tyler Lockett, cornerback Richard Sherman, safety Earl Thomas and linebacker Bobby Wagner.
Patriots star Tom Brady was selected for the 11th time, most of any player this year. Among the other Patriots honoured were tight end Rob Gronkowski and cornerback Malcolm Butler, whose last-minute interception clinched New England's Super Bowl win over Seattle.
NFC West champion Arizona was paced by quarterback Carson Palmer, receiver Larry Fitzgerald and cornerback Patrick Peterson. In addition, safety Tyrann Mathieu was selected, but will miss the game after tearing his ACL in Sunday's win over Philadelphia.
Wide receiver A.J. Green, defensive tackle Geno Atkins, tight end Tyler Eifert, safety Reggie Nelson and offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth were selected from Cincinnati. It's the most Bengals selected since the 2005 season.
"I'm excited for our players who have been voted in," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said. "They are both thrilled and honoured to be recognized. It's a tribute to their teammates and the organization to have the number selected today and the high alternates."
Raiders safety Charles Woodson, who announced on Monday that he will retire after the season, was selected for the ninth time.
Also selected was Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who has 91 catches for 1,396 yards and 13 touchdowns, tied for the league lead. Beckham was given a one-game suspension on Monday for his conduct on Sunday against Carolina, when he drew three personal foul penalties.
Twenty-five players selected were first-timers, including three rookies: the Rams' Todd Gurley, Lockett and the Chiefs' Marcus Peters. Peters was one of five Chiefs honoured, including linebackers Tamba Hali and Justin Houston and safety Eric Berry, who was diagnosed with lymphoma and had to step away from the game late in the 2014 season.
Hall of Famers Jerry Rice and Michael Irvin will serve as alumni team captains for their Pro Bowl teams. The draft will be on Jan. 27.
The Pro Bowl will be held on Jan. 31 in Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Full list of Pro Bowl selections
Quarterbacks
Tom Brady, New England Patriots
Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers
Carson Palmer, Arizona Cardinals
Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
Running Backs
Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
Devonta Freeman, Atlanta Falcons *
Jonathan Stewart, Carolina Panthers *
Todd Gurley, St. Louis Rams *
Doug Martin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
LeSean McCoy, Buffalo Bills
Fullbacks
Marcel Reece, Oakland Raiders
Mike Tolbert, Carolina Panthers
Tight Ends
Tyler Eifert, Cincinnati Bengals *
Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots
Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs *
Greg Olsen, Carolina Panthers
Wide Receivers
Odell Beckham, Jr., New York Giants
Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers
Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
A.J. Green, Cincinnati Bengals
DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans *
Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions
Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons
Brandon Marshall, New York Jets
Tackles
Tyron Smith, Dallas Cowboys
Joe Staley, San Francisco
Joe Thomas, Cleveland Browns
Andrew Whitworth, Cincinnati Bengals
Trent Williams, Washington
Jason Peters, Philadelphia Eagles
Guards
David DeCastro, Pittsburgh Steelers *
Mike Iupati, Arizona Cardinals
Josh Sitton, Green Bay Packers
Trai Turner, Carolina Panthers *
Marshal Yanda, Baltimore Ravens
Zack Martin, Dallas Cowboys
Centres
Travis Frederick, Dallas Cowboys
Ryan Kalil, Carolina Panthers
Mike Pouncey, Miami Dolphins
Alex Mack, Cleveland Browns
Defensive Ends
Ezekiel Ansah, Detroit Lions *
Michael Bennett, Seattle Seahawks *
Chandler Jones, New England Patriots *
Khalil Mack, Oakland Raiders *
J.J. Watt, Houston Texans
Muhammad Wilkerson, New York Jets *
Interior Defensive Linemen
Geno Atkins, Cincinnati Bengals
Calais Campbell, Arizona Cardinals
Fletcher Cox, Philadelphia Eagles *
Aaron Donald, St. Louis Rams
Gerald McCoy, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Kawann Short, Carolina Panthers *
Inside/Middle Linebackers
Navorro Bowman, San Francisco 49ers
Luke Kuechly, Carolina Panthers
Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers
Bobby Wagner, Seattle Seahawks
Outside Linebackers
Jamie Collins, New England Patriots *
Thomas Davis, Carolina Panthers *
Tamba Hali, Kansas City Chiefs
Justin Houston, Kansas City Chiefs
Von Miller, Denver Broncos
DeMarcus Ware, Denver Broncos
Cornerbacks
Chris Harris, Jr., Denver Broncos
Josh Norman, Carolina Panthers *
Marcus Peters, Kansas City Chiefs *
Patrick Peterson, Arizona Cardinals
Darrelle Revis, New York Jets
Richard Sherman, Seattle Seahawks
Aqib Talib, Denver Broncos
Malcolm Butler, New England Patriots *
Free Safeties
Tyrann Mathieu, Arizona Cardinals *
Reggie Nelson, Cincinnati Bengals *
Earl Thomas, Seattle Seahawks
Strong Safeties
Eric Berry, Kansas City Chiefs
Kam Chancellor, Seattle Seahawks
Charles Woodson, Oakland Raiders
Punters
Sam Koch, Baltimore Ravens *
Johnny Hekker, St. Louis Rams
Kick Returners
Tyler Lockett, Seattle Seahawks *
Darren Sproles, Philadelphia Eagles
Kickers
Dan Bailey, Dallas Cowboys *
Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots
Special Teams Players
Justin Bethel, Arizona Cardinals
Matthew Slater, New England Patriots
* First-time Pro Bowler
