Marshall law

All of the theatrics and football skill of the AFC’s 59-41 victory in Sunday’s Pro Bowl could be capsulized in receiver Brandon Marshall’s please-please-please catch in the third quarter.

Running a streak pattern, Marshall tried to chase down AFC quarterback Andy Dalton’s high-arcing throw. Cornerback Charles Tillman and safety Earl Thomas collided as Marshall fell into the end zone. With his back on the turf and his face to the Halawa sky, Marshall secured the third of his four touchdown passes.

It was a wildly executed effort in a game in which entertainment often trumped ferocity.

If this was the final Pro Bowl in Hawaii, then it went out with a record-setting blast of points and daring.

Each of the six All-Pro quarterbacks threw two touchdown passes.

The NFC, coached by the Green Bay Packers’ staff, called for two onside kicks — both were successful — and Andy Lee’s fourth-down pass on a fake punt.

"They started off doing some onside kicks, doing some illegal things they weren’t supposed to do," Marshall said. "It got personal. We had some coaches over there who got fired up. We were competing."

NFC quarterback Aaron Rodgers said: "Oh, they got a little sensitive."

The NFC stormed to a 14-0 lead on wideout Larry Fitzgerald’s two scoring catches, from 10 and 44 yards. On the lengthier play, Fitzgerald maneuvered past the NFC’s Darelle Revis, who appeared to shade his eyes from the sun.

"I’m trying to win a little bit of money out there," Fitzgerald said, noting the $25,000 difference between the winners’ and losers’ shares. "If you’re going to play, you might as well play to win."

That also was Marshall’s mantra.

With the Miami Dolphins failing to qualify for the playoffs, Marshall had a month to train for this all-star game. The goal, he said, "was to go for the MVP."

Although there were rules to ensure safety — no blitzing or stunts — some players added their precautions of bear-hug tackles and sliding to avoid further contact. The crowd reacted sometimes with amusement, but after rookie Cam Newton threw away a pass, there were jeers.

"This is the game of football," Marshall said. "It doesn’t matter what type of game it is (or) who you play. It’s the same feeling. There are some guys going 100 (percent), some guys going 90, some guys not going at all. I’m thankful. You never know when this game is going to be taken away from you. When you get a chance to step across the lines, you have to go 100 percent."

Marshall did that on 74-yard, catch-and-dash collaboration with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to tie it at 14.

The NFC then regained the lead when Jimmy Graham caught a 2-yard scoring pass from New Orleans Saints teammate Drew Brees.

"He’s such a great quarterback," Graham said.

After making the catch, Graham jogged toward the middle of the end zone, then dunked the ball over the crossbars.

"This was a baby windmill," said Graham, who then chased down the ball as a memento. "I wasn’t really warm yet. I didn’t want to pull anything."

Graham said he didn’t expect some of the action to turn overly physical.

"I went out on a deep ball and got popped by (safety Eric) Weddle," Graham said. "That was surprising because I was out with him (Saturday) at Pipeline, watching Kelly Slater surf the big waves. It’s tough when you get out there (on the field)."

In the third quarter, Newton’s 55-yard pass to Steve Smith gave the NFC its final lead, at 35-31.

On the ensuing possession, Marshall made the acrobatic touchdown catch to give the AFC a 38-35 lead it would not relinquish.

"He’s a great receiver," said Dalton, a rookie quarterback from the Cincinnati Bengals. "My job was to get the ball out there. He made a spectacular catch."

Marshall said: "It was the most unathletic highlight I ever had. They put it up there for me to make a play. I saw the ball, kicked it up, and it just fell into my hands."

Later, he added: "Sometimes you close your eyes and sometimes the ball bounces on your side."

Indeed, there were a lot of bouncing footballs. In all, there were four fumbles, three of them resulting in turnovers, and five interceptions.

On one of them, Weddle intercepted Newton, then pitched to linebacker Derrick Johnson, who huffed and puffed his way 60 yards for a touchdown.

"It was a good pitchback from Eric Weddle," Johnson said. "I tried to take it to the house and I followed my block. I’ve got a little bit of moves in me. Not much, but a little."

Fiitzgerald closed the scoring with his third touchdown catch, a 36-yarder with 2:37 to play.

By then, the polls had closed. Marshall was an overwhelming winner of the MVP award after producing six catches for 176 yards and four touchdowns.

"I went all out today because it could be my last Pro Bowl," said Marshall, who plans to give his prize — an SUV — to his mother.

Several players acknowledged this could be the last Pro Bowl in Hawaii.

"This game is so much fun to play," Brees said. "Really, what makes it is being in Hawaii. These fans are great. I hope it stays here."