Falcons tight end Austin Hooper picked for first Pro Bowl

Falcons tight end Austin Hooper, who’s in his third season in the NFL, was picked to replace Eagles tight end Zach Ertz in the Pro Bowl on Tuesday.

Hooper, who had a breakthrough season, was the first alternate at the position. The Pro Bowl is set for Sunday, Jan. 27 at CampingWorld Stadium in Orlando.

Hooper caught 71 passes for 660 yards and four touchdowns, all career-highs, last season.

“It was great considering all of the hard work that I was putting in over the offseason,” Hooper told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution after being named the first alternate. “So, it’s just gratifying to know that if you make sacrifices and put in the work that it would come.”

Hooper and Ertz both played at Stanford.