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Wednesday Round-Up: Seahawks Inspire NFL's "Autism Friendly" Approach To 2017 Pro Bowl

A daily link round-up of what's "out there" about your Seattle Seahawks.

Photos of Seahawks players practicing with the NFC team in Orlando at the 2017 Pro Bowl.

Good morning, 12s. 

Here's a look at what's "out there" for today - January 25 - about your Seattle Seahawks: 

NFL Makes Pro Bowl "Autism Friendly"

This weekend's Pro Bowl game in Florida is taking a page out of the Seahawks' playbook when it comes to making the gameday experience at Orlando's Camping World Stadium "autism friendly."

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the NFL will offer "Sensory Sacks" to any fans who want them, and included inside are noise-canceling headphones, stress-relief squeeze toys, identification stickers youth can wear to help others recognize they may behave differently, as well as wristbands noting the child's row and seat number should they wander off. A safe room will also be available on site should individuals on the autism spectrum become overwhelmed by the crowd and commotion, and stadium personnel will receive special training on how to interact with those on the spectrum.

The Seahawks have been employing the same "autism friendly" approach since October 2015, when the team partnered with A-OK Autism to offer Sensory Sacks and train stadium staff at CenturyLink Field. Seattle general manager John Schneider and his wife Traci have a young child with autism - also setting up a fund in his name to help families provide treatment - and so do the two moms who started A-OK Autism, which is working with the NFL at the Pro Bowl in Orlando. 

"I'll never forget standing there before the first game in Seattle and having a father come up to us and say, 'I've been a Seahawks fan all my life, and I've always wanted to take my son to a game — and now I can,'" said Jennifer Sollars Miller, co-founder of Autism Friendly Locations, the nonprofit that started the A-OK program. "It just made me so happy. The program there has been an overwhelming success."

Depending on the program's success at the Pro Bowl, the NFL may work to expand its "autism friendly" efforts in the future.

"Our goal is to make the game as family-friendly as possible," said Anna Isaacson, the NFL's senior vice president of social responsibility. "We want to see if this is something the fans take advantage of and, if so, whether we can extend it to the Super Bowl and perhaps share it with the rest of the league."

Directions on where fans can pick up Sensory Sacks at this weekend's Pro Bowl will be announced inside the stadium on gameday.

Tweet Of The Day

Today's "Tweet of the Day" comes from the NFL, which shares a short clip of Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman and receiver Doug Baldwin battling it out at the Pro Bowl in Orlando.

More From Around The Web

Here at Seahawks.com, we lay out everything you need to know about the 2017 Pro Bowl, the NFL's annual all-star game set to take place this Sunday featuring seven Seahawks players.

And Mary's Place's 'No Child Sleeps Outside' campaign, an effort to end homelessness in the Seattle area that Seahawks kicker Steven Hauschka backed with a celebrity ping-pong tournament last month, raised more than $4.5 million in just over 30 days, according to the Seattle Times.

Photos of Sea Gal Christian's first day at the Pro Bowl in Orlando.

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