ASSOCIATED PRESS
Oakland quarterback Rich Gannon threw the ball during practice for the Pro Bowl yesterday at Ihilani Resort.
One of the biggest men of the hour won't be making it to Hawaii for Sunday's Pro Bowl. Tampa Bay defensive tackle Warren Sapp dropped out of the game with a knee injury yesterday. Sapp out of action
McNabb flies again
for Pro Bowl
Events scheduleFrom staff and wire reports
Sapp, an Aloha Stadium favorite, was replaced by Carolina's Kris Jenkins, a second-year defensive tackle who will make his first Pro Bowl appearance. Jenkins, who joined Sapp on the league's All-Pro team, had seven sacks and 60 tackles this season while starting all 16 games for the Panthers.
Sapp was selected to his sixth straight Pro Bowl, but he didn't make the trip with his five teammates who were chosen for the NFL's all-star game. Sapp had 7 1/2 sacks during the regular season, then led Tampa Bay's dominant defensive performance in the Super Bowl against Oakland.
Quarterback Brad Johnson, defensive end Simeon Rice, fullback Mike Alstott, linebacker Derrick Brooks and safety John Lynch were expected to be in Hawaii for NFC workouts today. The Buccaneers held their victory parade in Tampa on Tuesday.
St. Louis offensive tackle Orlando Pace will also skip the Pro Bowl to rest from an accumulation of injuries.
Pace was selected to his fourth straight Pro Bowl despite missing six games last season with calf and hamstring injuries. He also sprained his right knee in the Rams' season-ending win over San Francisco.
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
NFC coach Andy Reid directed practice yesterday as Minnesota's Michael Bennett looked on.
Seattle tackle Walter Jones also dropped out of the Pro Bowl earlier this week following surgery on his right shoulder.
Pace and Jones were replaced by Jon Runyan of the Philadelphia Eagles and Chris Samuels of the Washington Redskins. Both players practiced yesterday with the NFC.
"I'm just looking at it as a fantastic opportunity," said Runyan, a first-time Pro Bowl player. "When they asked me, I didn't need much time to think about it."
Raiders arrive: Rich Gannon smiled and joked. Lincoln Kennedy admitted some sourness but put a pleasant face on it all. The ultracompetitive Jerry Rice seemed in a dark, glowering mood, but in the end, even he cracked a smile or two.
The Raiders, who arrived for their first Pro Bowl practice yesterday, seem to be coping with last Sunday's Super Bowl rout at the hands of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
"There's no way to sugar coat what happened," said Gannon, who suffered a five-interception night. But he and his teammates have been greeted warmly by their fellow Pro Bowlers coming off such a devastating loss, although, "there's not a whole lot you can say," Gannon said.
"We've all been through it, and that's the one thing in this business, you know. There's only one team, one organization when it's all said and done that can say they're world champions. Everybody else is closer to second place. And unfortunately for us, it just wasn't our night that night."
TV audience: The normally laid-back atmosphere at the Ihilani Resort took on a different flavor yesterday. Though practices there are normally closed to the public, there were special bleachers filled with a bused-in audience for the taping of an ESPN special "Ultimate Defender," hosted by former pros Mark Malone and Mike Golic.
NFL players who competed in the made-for-TV skills contest included the New York Jets' John Abraham, Washington's LaVar Arrington, Atlanta's Keith Brooking, Pittsburgh's Joey Porter, Denver's Trevor Pryce, Miami's Jason Taylor and Chicago's Brian Urlacher.
Good works: Philadelphia's Troy Vincent, David Akers, Chad Lewis and Bobby Taylor, Dallas' La'Roi Glover, New England's Larry Izzo, and Miami's Patrick Surtain and Tim Bowens visited Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children yesterday.
Sellout near: About 1,000 tickets remained last night for Sunday's game; many of them were returned by players who don't need them.
The NFL moved the blackout deadline from today to tomorrow. That means if the game is sold out by tomorrow, it will be televised live in Hawaii.
Kalani Simpson and Dave Reardon of the Star-Bulletin contributed to this report
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2003 NFL Pro Bowl
Week ScheduleToday
10 a.m.: AFC practice, free admission, Aloha Stadium.
Noon-8 p.m.: Topps NFL Experience, Fort DeRussy.
1 p.m.: NFL Charities Beach Bowling Bash, free admission, Hilton Hawaiian Village Lagoon.
3-5:30 p.m.: Pro Bowl youth clinic, War Memorial Sports Complex, Keopulani Park, Maui.
Tomorrow
10 a.m.: NFC practice, free admission, Aloha Stadium.
Noon-10 p.m.: Topps NFL Experience, Fort DeRussy.
3-5:30 p.m.: Military Day and NFL Military Challenge, special price for military, Fort DeRussy.
3-5:30 p.m.: Pro Bowl youth clinic, Vidinha Stadium, Lihue.
6 p.m.-midnight: Pro Bowl Block Party, Aloha Tower Marketplace.
7-10 p.m.: Friday Night at the Experience Topps NFL Experience, free with Topps NFL Experience ticket, Fort DeRussy.
Saturday
7:45-10:45 a.m.: Pro Bowl youth clinic, Waipio Peninsula Soccer Park.
9 a.m.: NFC practice, free admission, Aloha Stadium.
10 a.m.: AFC practice, free admission, Aloha Stadium.
10 a.m.-10 p.m.: Youth Day, Topps NFL Experience, Fort DeRussy.
10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.: Pro Bowl youth Clinic, Waipio Peninsula Soccer Park.
7-10 p.m.: Pro Bowl Pregame Jam, Fort DeRussy.
Sunday
9:30 a.m.-noon: NFL Tailgate Party, Richardson FIeld.
10 a.m.-6 p.m.: Topps NFL Experience, Fort DeRussy.
11:40 a.m.: Pro Bowl pregame festivities begin, Aloha Stadium.
12:30 p.m.: NFL Pro Bowl, AFC All-Stars vs. NFC All-Stars, Aloha Stadium.
Monday
12:30 p.m.: NFL Charities Golf Tournament, Waialae Country Club.
