Patriots Pro Bowlers: Why these seven players made the roster

Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports

2. Stephen Gostkowski, 1. Matthew Slater

Since Gostkowski and Slater are both special teamers, they get grouped together in this slide. That’s not to take away from either of their accomplishments, of course.

By connecting on 30 of 32 field goal attempts thus far, Gostkowski earned his third straight and fourth total Pro Bowl nod. The Patriots’ all-time leading scorer accomplished a number of feats over the course of the 2015 regular season.

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Against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 3, Gostkowski set a record that we can safely say will never be broken when he booted through his 423 consecutive extra point dating back to his rookie season of 2006. Two weeks later, Gostkowski tied Adam Vinatieri’s franchise record when he drilled a 57-yard attempts at AT&T Stadium. Gostkowski was the difference in the Patriots’ thrilling win over the Giants when he nailed a 54-yarder to make the score 27-26 with just one second remaining.

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Gostkowski is quite possibly the best at his position in the game, giving the Patriots not only the best quarterback and tight end in football, but also the best kicker.

Moving on to No. 18, Slater made his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl thanks to his outstanding special teams ability. In a season that has been fraught with special teams errors, Slater has been one of the few constants, tearing it up on punt coverage like always.

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There isn’t a more exemplary player on the roster in terms of the Patriot Way than Slater. The Patriots are lucky to have him.