Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu has decided not to play in the 2014 Pro Bowl this year and Cleveland Browns safety T.J. Ward has replaced him on the roster, according to Tom Withers of the Associated Press.
Withers states that Polamalu backed out of the annual All-Star game in Hawaii with an injury, but it could very well be that he just doesn’t have any interest in going this year.
Polamalu started every game this season for the Steelers and that marked just the fifth time that he has accomplished that feat during his 11 years in the league.
Last offseason, Polamalu focused on finally getting over a calf injury that had plagued him for several seasons and that process included him breaking down scar tissue in the problematic area of his body.
“When you have an injury that’s bothered you for the last four years, there gets to be just so much scar tissue in there,” Polamalu said last May. “If you don’t attack the problem scar tissue, then your just going to continue to have problems.
“So this year I really focused on that and found a great physical therapist and obliviously continue to keep working with my trainer. So everything has evolved there and evolved nicely.”
Polamalu trains during the offseason out in California under the watchful eye of his trainer Marv Marinovich. In addition to Marinovich, Polamalu was also rumored to have worked with renowned trainer Alex Guerrero as well.
With Polamalu backing out, that currently leaves wide receiver Antonio Brown as the only Steelers player that is scheduled to play in the Pro Bowl.
