Tampa Bay’s Baker Mayfield beat Houston’s C.J. Stroud in the Precision Passing skills challenge, helping the NFC build a 12-6 lead over the AFC on the opening night of the 2024 Pro Bowl Games. The made-for-TV Pro Bowl Skills Show, aired Thursday night from a fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Central Florida, kicked off two days of competition that culminates Sunday with a seven-on-seven flag football game at Camping World Stadium. It’s the second year for a revamped format that replaced the traditional Pro Bowl tackle football game last winter in Las Vegas.
The Ravens were the No. 1 seed in the AFC and cruised in their first postseason game, beating the Texans 34-10 last weekend. The Chiefs — a No. 3 seed — are playing in the AFC championship game for a sixth straight season. Kansas City had a tougher road to Sunday's game, narrowly beating the Buffalo Bills 27-24 last weekend.
The Baltimore Ravens clinched the top seed in the AFC two weekends ago when they thrashed Miami. Coach John Harbaugh barely had time to enjoy the victory before facing an inevitable question about 2019. Led by MVP Lamar Jackson, Baltimore went 14-2.
Mike McDaniel downplayed the Dolphins' struggles against tough competition earlier in the season, when Miami had plenty of time to reverse that trend. On Sunday, after the Buffalo Bills beat Miami 21-14 and knocked the Dolphins down to the sixth seed in the AFC, McDaniel didn't minimize his team's frustrations.