Yesterday, the NFL held its annual exhibition of all-star talent, the infamous Pro Bowl.

The prevailing question for many people, including me, during this compelling sporting event was “”Why?””

The Pro Bowl is not like other sports’ all-star games. It comes at the end of the season because it is too risky to play in the middle of the season as other sports do. By the time the game is finally played, no one really cares any more. The ultimate game, the Super Bowl, has already taken place. After that, everything else is anti-climactic.

The Pro Bowl is an honor, but a small one compared to other all-star games. Every year, a rash of mysterious injuries appear just before the game.

This is because the players just don’t care. Sure, they enjoy the free trip to Hawaii for the game, but after that, they just want to have fun. They have just played 16 games — more if they made it to the post season. By the time of the Pro Bowl, the season is over and the players are ready to move on.

Baseball and basketball are a little different. They both have all-star games that are much better than football’s equivalent. Baseball’s all-star game has got to be the best. The matchup between the National League and the American League is a sports classic. It is truly an honor to be selected.

It is also a welcomed break in the middle of a grueling season. Players come, they fraternize, and then each play only a couple of innings on a nice July evening. Sure, there are some dissenters who get “”injured”” before the game, but not nearly as many as the NFL. Plus, baseball has the home run derby, which is always a fan favorite.

Basketball’s mid-season get-together is also fun. Just watch the players; you can tell that they’re having fun. Sure, the game is not that great, and that can be argued of any NBA game, but the players are not taking it seriously. As in baseball, they are just hanging out, enjoying the midseason break and the chance to play with the best players around. Basketball also has the three-point shootout and the dunk contest, which brings even more fun and excitement.

What should the NFL do? I don’t know. They should not scrap it. It is still fun to see some of the league’s best perform. They should move it to the middle of the season, but tone it down a little so there is less risk of injury. Then they could get rid of that bye week once the league expands to 32 teams.

People would pay a lot more attention to what was going on if the game were in the middle of the season instead of after the season.

Right now, no one cares.