JACKSONVILLE – This is his second time being named to the Pro Bowl, but his first overall Pro Bowl experience.

And if Jaguars tight end Evan Engram is very experienced by NFL standards, he's not so 'grizzled' that he isn't savoring what he calls a very special moment.

"Definitely this accolade means a lot to me," he said.

Engram, in his seventh NFL season and second with the Jaguars, is participating in this weekend's 2024 Pro Bowl Games in Orlando, Fla. It's his second time being named to the Pro Bowl, having also made the games as a member of the New York Giants following the 2020 season.

The Pro Bowl game/event was cancelled that season because of COVID-19.

"This is really my first experience," Engram said. "I don't take it lightly. You turn on the film every week, and you're standing next to all the guys that you watch – all the guys on defense that are flying around making plays, making it hard for offenses.

"Even the guys that I study and watch on the offensive side of the ball … just being around them is cool. It's tough to get here, to be a multiple time, it's even harder.

"I'm definitely trying to keep going, to keep being here year after year."

Engram earned his way to the '24 Pro Bowl with one of the most-productive seasons for a tight end in NFL history – and one of the best tight end seasons in Jaguars history. He caught 114 passes for 963 yards and four touchdowns, with the 114 receptions two shy of the NFL record for tight ends and two shy of wide receiver Jimmy Smith's franchise record for receptions set in 1999.

"The numbers were cool, and it means a lot to get out here and hang out with all these guys and compete and have fun," Engram said. "You grew up watching the Pro Bowl, watching all the best guys across the league come together and just have fun and compete. To be here and live it myself, it's a blessing.

"I don't take it lightly. I've been out here hanging out, talking ball, chilling, going to all the parks and just taking it all in for sure. It has been real cool."

Among Engram's cooler Pro Bowl moments:

• Catching up with Eli Manning, who will coach the NFC team Sunday in the flag football event at Camping World Stadium and with whom Engram played with the New York Giants from 2017-2019. "He was happy to see me here, to have the seasons I've had the past two years," Engram said. "There were a lot of rough times in New York and we were together for some of those, but Eli was a big part of my development as a pro – through the adversity, just how to stay yourself and stay present and stay true to yourself through the hard times. He was definitely a great example for that."
• A conversation on Thursday with Hall of Fame middle linebacker Ray Lewis. "We were just hanging out and, just getting to pick his brain on how he operated every single day when he was in his prime – just from a leadership standpoint," Engram said of Lewis. "I was just trying to get as many nuggets as I can, to try to emulate. He's obviously one of the best linebackers who ever played, but probably one of the best leaders to ever be in this league. So, that conversation was really cool for me. I definitely got a lot of wisdom from him that I can, I can kind of formulate it into my own way and, and take it back to Jacksonville once we get back going."

Engram, too, spoke of the need to move forward positively from a Jaguars 2023 season that ended with them missing the postseason by one game after five losses in the last six games.

"I just think that experience, going through that humbling and very shocking feeling, is going to push us in the right direction as far as motivation, execution, consistency – the leadership, top down – to get where we want to go," Engrams said. "We have to do things a lot differently, a lot better at a higher level, at a consistent rate.

"As detrimental as it was, as unfortunate as it was, I think it's going to definitely put us in the right direction, as far as mentality for 18 weeks of how we have to approach each day to make sure something like that doesn't happen again."