Which Pro Bowlers Will The Cowboys Face In 2016?

The Pro Bowl, the NFL’s annual All-Star Game, will take place this Sunday from the tropical locale of Honolulu, Hawaii.

If you were unaware, an impossibility since we had you covered here at Inside The Star, the Dallas Cowboys will have five representatives in the game:

• Dan Bailey, PK
• Travis Frederick, C
• Sean Lee*, OLB
• Zack Martin, G
• Tyron Smith, OT

*named as an alternate

There is a ton of other Pro Bowl level talent on the Cowboys, but thanks to a weird season only a handful of players earned the honor in 2015. But what about 2016? Which Dallas Cowboys will be headed to Hawaii a year from now?

The answer is hopefully zero as the Super Bowl participants are unable to take place in the Pro Bowl, but they’ll have to get through the 2016 to make it there. That road is paved with some other Pro Bowl talent that they’ll have to vanquish along the way. So exactly which Pro Bowlers will the Cowboys be squaring off against in the 2016 regular season on their way to Super Bowl LI?

We obviously don’t know the 2016 schedule, but we know its opponents. Here are the Pro Bowlers that the Cowboys will have to take on next season:

New York Giants Odell Beckham Jr., WR Eli Manning*, QB	Philadelphia Eagles Fletcher Cox, DL Jason Peters, OT Darren Sproles, RS Malcolm Jenkins*, S	Washington Redskins Trent Williams, OT
Minnesota Vikings Anthony Barr*, LB Teddy Bridgewater*, QB Adrian Peterson, RB Harrison Smith*, FS	Green Bay Packers Clay Matthews, MLB Julius Peppers*, OLB Aaron Rodgers^, QB Josh Sitton, G	Detroit Lions Ezekiel Ansah, DE Calvin Johnson^, WR
Cincinnati Bengals Geno Atkins, DT Tyler Eifert, TE A.J. Green, WR Adam Jones*, CB Reggie Nelson^, FS Cedric Peerman*, ST Andrew Whitworth, OT Carlos Dunlap*, DE	Pittsburgh Steelers Antonio Brown, WR David DeCastro, G Ben Roethlisberger^, QB	Baltimore Ravens Elvis Dumervil, OLB Sam Koch, P Marshal Yanda, G
Cleveland Browns Gary Barnidge*, TE Alex Mack, C Joe Thomas, OT	San Francisco 49ers NaVorro Bowman, LB Joe Staley, OT	Tampa Bay Buccaneers Lavonte David*, OLB Logan Mankins*, G Doug Martin, RB Gerald McCoy, DL Jameis Winston*, QB

*named as an alternate

^will not be participating and had an alternate named in their absence

The list is quite full, isn’t it?

There are 41 total players here who were named as Pro Bowlers either outright or as replacements for those who won’t be in attendance. There have been 135 players invited as a result of the declined invitations, meaning that 30% of the 2015 Pro Bowl-caliber players will be facing the Cowboys next season.

In fact 15 of the 16 games that the Dallas Cowboys will play in 2016 will contain Pro Bowl talent from this season. The only 2016 opponent for the Cowboys without a Pro Bowler is the Chicago Bears. Sad face, Chi-City.

The Cowboys will have some elite talent, in terms of Pro Bowlers, that they’ll need to go through in 2016. Let’s hope that they’re up for it.

[signoff author=”rjochoa” source=”fancred”]

Which Pro Bowlers from this list scare you the most? Tell me about it! Comment below, Email me at Roel.Ochoa.Jr@Gmail.com, or Tweet to me at @rjochoa!