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The 2011 Pro Bowl is just a few weeks away, and the rosters were announced on Tuesday night. What we have to remember about the Pro Bowl this year is that players that are playing in the Super Bowl are not going to be in the game this year, as the Pro Bowl is played the week before the biggest game of the year, not a few weeks later.

That being said, it wouldn’t be overly surprising if either AFC QB Tom Brady or NFC QB Michael Vick are kept out of this game due to the fact that they are playing for the Lombardi Trophy the next week.

Even though we know right now that the rosters aren’t going to look like this when push comes to shove, we can still analyze the rosters as they sit at the moment.

Quarterbacks: The AFC has a fantastic trio of pure drop back passers. Brady simply plays with precision with every single pass, while his backups, Tom Brady and Peyton Manning were both fantastic all season long. In Manning and Rivers, the AFC has two of the top passers in terms of yardage in the league, while Brady has a great touch and should only be made better by a great crop of receivers, something that he doesn’t have in New England. The NFC is probably more dynamic. Atlanta’s Matt Ryan refuses to lose, while Drew Brees is seemingly always here in the Pro Bowl. Michael Vick as the start is an interesting choice, especially since he wasn’t even good enough to start in Philly at the outset of the season. There’s more than Vick can do with his legs, but the better passers are clearly in the AFC. Advantage: AFC

Running Backs: This is about as even of a match as you can get assuming that these are the backs that end up in the game. The AFC South duo of Maurice Jones-Drew and Arian Foster can run all day long, while Jamaal Charles has an explosive first step and is used to splitting carries. Michael Turner has been a workhorse all season long, which might cause him to be left out of the lineup for the Pro Bowl. Adrian Peterson is probably the most talented back in the league, while Steven Jackson is one of the most underappreciated backs that the league has to offer. Just one question for the AFC, though. Where’s Chris Johnson? Advantage: NFC

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends: If the AFC is winning this game, this is where it is doing it. This conference has three of the top men for receiving yards in the league in Andre Johnson, Brandon Lloyd, and Reggie Wayne, and you won’t find a better target near the end zone than Dwayne Bowe, who has three more TD catches than anyone else in the league. Antonio Gates probably isn’t playing, which leaves just Marcedes Lewis and potentially a man like Dustin Keller. The NFC has the better tight ends and a fantastic option sitting on the sidelines, as Vernon Davis would easily be a starter in the red conference. Jason Witten and the experienced Tony Gonzalez are fantastic. Roddy White is probably the best possession receiver in the NFL, and there is a nice mix as well with some speed, as both Greg Jennings and DeSean Jackson have some major speed. Advantage: AFC

2011 Pro Bowl Roster – AFC (Bold denotes starter)
Quarterbacks: Tom Brady, Philip Rivers, Peyton Manning
Running Backs: Maurice Jones-Drew, Arian Foster, Jamaal Charles
Fullback: Vonta Leach
Wide Receivers: Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne, Brandon Lloyd, Dwayne Bowe
Tight Ends: Antonio Gates, Marcedes Lewis
Centers: Nick Mangold, Maurkice Pouncey
Guards: Kris Dielman, Logan Mankins, Brian Waters
Tackles: Jake Long, Joe Thomas, D’Brickashaw Ferguson
Defensive Linemen: Dwight Freeney, Robert Mathis, Haloti Ngata, Vince Wilfork, Richard Seymour, Jason Babin
Linebackers: Ray Lewis, James Harrison, Cameron Wake, Jerod Mayo, Terrell Suggs
Cornerbacks: Nnamdi Asomugha, Darrelle Revis, Devin McCourty
Safeties: Troy Polamalu, Ed Reed, Brandon Meriweather
Punter: Shane Lechler
Kicker: Billy Cundiff
Kick Returner: Marc Mariani
Special Teams: Montell Owens

2011 Pro Bowl Roster – NFC (Bold denotes starter)
Quarterbacks: Michael Vick, Matt Ryan, Drew Brees
Running Backs: Michael Turner, Adrian Peterson, Steven Jackson
Fullback: Ovie Mughelli
Wide Receivers: Roddy White, Calvin Johnson, DeSean Jackson, Greg Jennings
Tight Ends: Jason Witten, Tony Gonzalez
Centers: Andre Gurode, Shaun O’Hara
Guards: Jahri Evans, Chris Snee, Carl Nicks
Tackles: Jason Peters, Jordan Gross, Chad Clifton
Defensive Linemen: Julius Peppers, John Abraham, Ndamukong Suh, Jay Ratliff, Justin Tuck, Justin Smith
Linebackers: Patrick Willis, Clay Matthews, DeMarcus Ware, Lance Briggs, Brian Urlacher
Cornerbacks: Asante Samuel, Charles Woodson, DeAngelo Hall
Safeties: Nick Collins, Adrian Wilson, Antrel Rolle
Punter: Mat McBriar
Kicker: David Akers
Kick Returner: Devin Hester
Special Teams: Eric Weems

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Week 17 sometimes isn’t the sexiest week on the NFL betting slate, but it is still a great time to make some money, especially in the games that mean the most to teams that are really trying hard to improve their playoff positioning or to carry some momentum into next year.

The game that we are going to start off with is the Sunday Night Football duel between the St. Louis Rams and the Seattle Seahawks. These two teams are playing in a de facto play in game for the postseason, as the winner will claim the NFC West title, while the loser will be left home from the second season. The Rams are probably the better of the two teams, but flying up to Qwest Field and winning a game isn’t going to be an easy task for whomever the No. 5 seed would be in the playoffs, let alone for the Rams, who are still below .500 at this point in the year. However, what we’re not so sure of is whether QB Matt Hasselbeck will be the man under center or not this week. He injured his hip last week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and isn’t expected to practice all week, and if he can’t go, QB Charlie Whitehurst is going to be forced under center, where he has been awful all season long. That’s why St. Louis is a slight one point favorite on the NFL odds.

The Indianapolis Colts are in a situation where they just have to win to get into the second season, and they are tremendous favorites to do so against the Tennessee Titans, a team that they dominated but couldn’t beat the pro football odds against just three weeks ago. Now, Indy knows that RB Dominic Rhodes and RB Joseph Addai can give it a shot in the arm in the ground game, which might make it even more dominating. The Titans know that they are just trying to play the spoiler role, but they are 9.5 point underdogs to pull off the upset.

The AFC North title is on the line in Cleveland and Baltimore this weekend. Should the Pittsburgh Steelers knock off the Cleveland Browns at the Dawg Pound, they would get the job done and earn a first round bye in the playoffs. There’s a big question whether S Troy Polamalu is going to be playing in this one, and if he doesn’t, Cleveland has proven that it can score points and move the pigskin against even the best defenses in the NFL. Don’t be shocked if the six point pups do some damage.

If that’s what happens, the Baltimore Ravens hold their own destiny in the AFC North race. Baltimore needs a win and a Pittsburgh loss to get the job done, something that isn’t going to happen easily. A loss to the Cincinnati Bengals earlier this season might prove to ultimately be the difference between the Ravens playing a home game in the second round of the playoffs and needing to win on the road three times to make it to the Super Bowl. The combination of some revenge and the fact that the division title could still be had makes the Ravens a hefty 10 point favorite on Sunday. However, remember that the Bengals knocked the San Diego Chargers out of the playoffs last week at home as 7.5 point dogs, so the possibility of an upset is there.

The NFC playoff race still has a lot of odds and ends to sort out for the two Wild Card spots, and we will be sure to discuss this later in the week. The only game that is on the Week 17 rotation schedule right now with any effect on the Wild Card chase is the duel between the New York Giants and the Washington Redskins. Simply put, this is a must win game for New York, which knows that it put itself in a major bind with a 45-17 loss at the Green Bay Packers in Week 16. The Redskins have been feisty, just as they were last week with an upset against the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road. They’re only 3.5 point home dogs in this divisional rivalry to end the regular season.

The newest addition to the NFL lines of the most note is the clash between the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers. Green Bay is perhaps the luckiest team in the NFL right now, as it gets to host the men from the Windy City with very little to play for. Instead of needing this one for a first round bye, the Bears clinched no worse than the No. 2 seed in the playoffs with the Philadelphia Eagles’ loss on Tuesday Night Football to the Minnesota Vikings. Yes, Chicago could get up to the No. 1 seed, but it would take a small miracle for that to happen. The oddsmakers aren’t expected the Bears to really care much about this one, as they are 10 point underdogs. The win for Green Bay would eliminate both the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who are +7.5 at the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, and the New York Giants.

2010 NFL Football Week 17 Lines @ Oddsmaker Sportsbook (as of 12/29/10):
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Week 17 Lines for Sunday, 1/2/11

301 Oakland Raiders +3.5
302 Kansas City Chiefs -3.5
Over/Under 43

303 Miami Dolphins +3.5
304 New England Patriots -3.5
Over/Under 44

305 Tennessee Titans +10
306 Indianapolis Colts -10
Over/Under 48

307 Jacksonville Jaguars OTB
308 Houston Texans OTB
Over/Under OTB

309 Pittsburgh Steelers -5.5
310 Cleveland Browns +5.5
Over/Under 37

311 Cincinnati Bengals +9.5
312 Baltimore Ravens -9.5
Over/Under 43

313 Minnesota Vikings +3
314 Detroit Lions -3
Over/Under 43

315 New York Giants -3.5
316 Washington Redskins +3.5
Over/Under 44

317 Chicago Bears +10
318 Green Bay Packers -10
Over/Under 41.5

319 Dallas Cowboys OTB
320 Philadelphia Eagles OTB
Over/Under OTB

321 Buffalo Bills +1.5
322 New York Jets -1.5
Over/Under 39.5

323 Carolina Panthers +14
324 Atlanta Falcons -14
Over/Under 41.5

325 Tampa Bay Buccaneers +7.5
326 New Orleans Saints -7.5
Over/Under 47

327 St. Louis Rams -3
328 Seattle Seahawks +3
Over/Under 41

329 Arizona Cardinals +6
330 San Francisco 49ers -6
Over/Under 39.5

331 San Diego Chargers -3.5
332 Denver Broncos +3.5
Over/Under 47.5