AFC pickoff caps competitive win

ORLANDO, FLA. — The Pro Bowl has long been more about showmanship than competition, but that memo missed Lorenzo Alexander.

The Buffalo linebacker could have just sat on a late interception for the win, but instead opted to return the ball 20 yards and then lateraled it to Aqib Talib, who came within 13 yards of the end zone in the AFC’s 20-13 win over the NFC in the NFL’s allstar game Sunday night.

“You’re playing fast, playing hard, having a good time, but we wanted to win” Alexander said. “We took it very serious.”

That was obvious on the final drive when Alexander, selected the game’s defensive MVP, got tight end Jimmy Graham on a hard hit over the middle as the NFC drove for what could have been the rallying game-winning drive. A couple of plays later, the ball went off Graham’s hands and right to Alexander.

But even on that play, the increased competitive spirit was obvious when quarterback Kirk Cousins stuck with the play after throwing the interception and knocked the ball out of Talib’s hands to save the touchdown.

While many of the 60,834 had left Camping World Stadium , those who stuck around saw an exiting end.

In the recent past, the Pro Bowl hadn’t produced a competitive environment. But perhaps the return of the AFC-vs.-NFC matchup, combined with a larger crowd than when the game was played in Hawaii, amped up the intensity just a bit.

“It was fun and it was competitive,” Alexander said. “It got a little chippy there late in the game, but that’s part of it when you have competitive people.”