Two Wisconsinites earn first Pro Bowl berths; three UW alums named

Two Wisconsinites were given their first Pro Bowl selections, including one rookie who spent most of his college career at the University of Wisconsin, when the National Football League named its teams for the 2026 NFL Pro Bowl Games.

Micah Parsons was the only Green Bay Packers player selected, but the state of Wisconsin got its share of representation.

Chimere Dike, a rookie from Waukesha North High School who played at Wisconsin before finishing his career at Florida, was given a spot on the AFC list. The Tennessee Titans special-teams ace leads the NFL in all-purpose and kick return yards and also happens to have four receiving touchdowns this year. He's returned two punts for scores, the first Titans player to have even one of those since 2012.

It's also a first-time trip for Hartford's Quinn Meinerz, though the Denver Broncos' fifth-year offensive lineman is already known as one of the better players in the league at his position. The guard, who played at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, was named first-team All-Pro last year, but wasn't on the Pro Bowl list. He hasn't missed a game in three seasons, and he's one of six Broncos players selected to the Pro Bowl Games.

Meinerz signed an $80 million contract extension before last season that lasts through 2028.

The list of selections also includes some familiar University of Wisconsin alumni.

• T.J. Watt (Pewaukee), the Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker, got his eighth straight Pro Bowl selection, at age 31. He has seven sacks this season in 13 games, with 10 tackles for loss. But he's currently sidelined after a training mishap led to a collapsed lung.
• Jonathan Taylor (University of Wisconsin) has a league-leading 17 rushing touchdowns to go with his 1,489 rushing yards, 351 receiving yards and league-best 288 carries this year. The Colts have fallen on hard times, but Taylor was getting MVP buzz earlier in the season. This is his third Pro Bowl selection.
• Zack Baun (Brown Deer) was named to his second Pro Bowl, both since joining the Philadelphia Eagles. The first-team All-Pro linebacker last season made major contributions to a Super Bowl run and got a three-year extension in the offseason. He has 117 tackles, two interceptions and 3.5 sacks this season.

Washington Commanders punter Tress Way, the brother-in-law of Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Brice Turang, was named to the Pro Bowl for the third time in his career. The 35-year-old is in his 12th season punting for the Commanders.

Madison-born tight end George Kittle of the San Francisco 49ers, who attended high school in Oklahoma, made his seventh Pro Bowl.

Pro Bowl selections are determined based on votes from fans, players and coaches, with each group's vote counting for one-third of the point totals.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Two Wisconsinites earn first Pro Bowl berths; three UW alums named