"He smiled wide and long, but Matthew Stafford wasn't taking the bait.

How disrespectful is it that the Lions only had one player selected to the Pro Bowl despite having the fourth-best record in the NFC?

"I think we're just -- we're still proving ourselves," Stafford said. "We're all excited for Calvin (Johnson). He deserves it. He's a great player. No doubt. But I think this will be some motivation for some guys, for sure."

While Stafford wouldn't acknowledge as much, the third-year quarterback is one of several Lions who fall into that category with a week left in the regular season and the playoffs on the horizon.

Stafford joined defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and safety Louis Delmas as Pro Bowl alternates -- receiver Johnson was voted a starter -- but chances are slim he'll make it to Hawaii for the game.

Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees were no-brainer selections for the team, and Eli Manning edged Stafford, Cam Newton and Tony Romo for the third quarterback spot. Newton is the NFC's first quarterback alternate and Romo is the second, meaning they'd go before Stafford as an injury or Super Bowl replacement.

"There's a lot of opinions that go into it, obviously, with all the fans, players and coaches," Stafford said. "But I'm not too worried about that. I'm more worried about this game coming up and then our team future. Hopefully I'm busy that weekend, anyway."

Stafford could get a chance to face all three of the NFC's Pro Bowl quarterbacks in the playoffs.

If the Lions win at Green Bay on Sunday for the first time since 1991, they'll be the five seed and play the winner of Sunday's Giants-Cowboys game in the wild-card round."