The 2022 NFL Pro Bowl is for fun and for fans to take a look at the game's best players, but players get more than a trip to Las Vegas to hang out and play some flag football, they also get some real Cash from the weekend.
The winning pro bowler will earn $80,000 while the losing player will earn $40,000. This is not a chump change by any means. Of course, many of these players have contracts that reduce these numbers, but not all. And, with millions of people watching and participating, the NFL isn't even doing it all for charity.
But, the difference of 40k between victory and defeat does not motivate these teams to try so hard. No one involved in the NFL wants any of these star players to get hurt, so it seems odd that winning is so encouraged.