SAN FRANCISCO — Throughout his 18-year NFL career, quarterback Joe Flacco accomplished just about everything.

He won a Super Bowl, won Super Bowl MVP, was the 2023 AP Comeback Player of the Year, started in three-quarters of his AFC North teams, and appeared in 209 career games.

But until last week, Flacco had never made a Pro Bowl.

But after 18 seasons, the 41-year-old got the call he had been waiting for and was named to the NFL’s All-Star Game as the alternate quarterback for the AFC team, which will play against the NFC on Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET (ESPN).

”[Bengals coach] Zack [Taylor] “I got a call and he was trying to make me feel about it, so I said if it comes to mind, I’ll do it,” Flacco said before the first practice Monday morning. “I don’t think it was a goal in the back of my head, but I definitely wanted to achieve it in the back of my mind.”

Flacco is one of 29 Pro Bowlers playing in the game for the first time, but according to Elias Sports Information, no player in league history has had to wait longer to be named to the Pro Bowl for the first time.

For most of his career, Flacco had fierce competition in the AFC with the likes of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, winning at least two quarterback spots. Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger and Chargers signal caller Philip Rivers also had tough battles. Flacco’s Ravens won Super Bowl 47, and Flacco won MVP honors in that game, but Manning and Brady beat Flacco for a spot in the Pro Bowl.

“I always wanted to be one of the three people elected,” Flacco said. “I try to tell people that Tom and Peyton, at least two of them, were locked into their positions for a long time.”

With all three quarterbacks on AFC’s initial roster either unavailable or opting out, Flacco earned a spot as a replacement. Patriots quarterback Drake Maye will not participate in Super Bowl LX (Sunday, 6:30 p.m. ET, NBC) while Josh Allen and Justin Herbert are nursing season-ending injuries.

Flacco is the second AFC replacement quarterback to be named to the roster, after former Cleveland Browns teammate Shedeur Sanders (who was 6 years old in 2008) was drafted 18th overall by the Baltimore Ravens a few days earlier. Flacco’s other teammate on the Cincinnati Bengals, quarterback Joe Burrow, was also 12 years old when the veteran entered the league and was named to the Pro Bowl as his last replacement.

Sanders, who made his first Pro Bowl appearance shortly after his rookie season, took the opportunity to playfully jab Flacco before Monday’s practice.

“I already got it,” Sanders said in response to a question about what he hopes to get out of his Pro Bowl experience. “I talked to a lot of great players, and both Shute and Joe Flacco finished it all wearing the same sweatpants that they wore to practice.”

Although the agreement came later than Flacco had hoped, the timing of his first Pro Bowl nomination means his children, four sons and one daughter ranging in age from 7 to 13, are particularly excited about the experience.

“I think it’s really great at the moment because we’ve got some boys who are very interested in being here and being around this. It’s a lot of fun,” Flacco said.

Like Flacco, Denver Broncos offensive lineman Garrett Bolles is also a first-time Pro Bowler, but the 2017 first-round pick only waited half a quarterback’s time before getting the call.

“I didn’t start my career the way I wanted, but I’m finishing it the way I wanted, and that’s the most important thing,” Bolles said. “There’s a quote: It doesn’t matter how you start, it matters how you finish. So you have to keep grinding. You have to keep trying. Eventually your name will be called.”

And, like Flacco, Bolles said he enjoys the timing of his selection because it gave him the opportunity to make memories with his children.

“He’s at an age where he enjoys it and loves it,” Boles said of her 9-year-old son Kingston. “To have them come here and embrace it, and he loves getting all the prizes. So he’s excited to come here and be with everyone, but it’s great to have a son who loves football and knows what his dad does and loves it and is still my friend.”

Before Sunday’s practice, Bolles threw a pass in the end zone to Kingston, who was 4 months old when he was drafted by the Broncos. Giggling, Kingston corralled the football and weaved his way through the other Pro Bowlers scattered on the turf to escape from his father.

“It’s great to have my kids and wife here,” Bolles said. “To be here with him and have him run around and have fun with the guys. Everybody’s so nice and sweet to him. He knows everybody. He always says, ‘Oh, that’s Jonathan Taylor from the Colts.'” I mean, he knows all the numbers, he knows all the players. That’s why he enjoys what daddy does and enjoys being here with daddy. He will never forget it. ”