Kansas City, Mo ? Dante Hall reported to training camp worried about getting cut. Now, he’s headed for the Pro Bowl.

“I’m trying to stop smiling. I really am,” Kansas City’s diminutive return specialist said. “But I can’t.”

He and four members of a Kansas City offense that leads the league in scoring were all named to the Pro Bowl on Thursday, the most since six Chiefs were selected in 1997.

Right guard Will Shields, left tackle Willie Roaf, tight end Tony Gonzalez and running back Priest Holmes all led the AFC in fan voting at their positions.

But none was happier than Hall, the 5-foot-8, 180-pounder who was drafted in the fifth round in 2000 and spent 2001 in NFL Europe. A special project of coach Dick Vermeil, Hall fought his way onto the roster last summer after being switched from running back to wide receiver.

“It’s just an unbelievable feeling. I never could think something like this could happen for me, going from struggling just to make the team to the Pro Bowl,” Hall said. “You just can’t imagine that, man. I’m really happy for (Vermeil) and my mom. If it hadn’t been for his faith in me, I might not even be in the league.”

A Houston native, Hall has six touchdown plays this year of 49 yards or more.

Against Arizona on Dec. 1, he had a team-record 90-yard punt return for a touchdown.

The following week against the Rams, Hall had an 88-yard kickoff return and an 86-yard punt return for touchdowns. Then last week at Denver, he had a 75-yard catch-and-run for a TD before turning in what many felt was one of the most amazing plays they ever saw.

Taking a screen pass on the Denver 49, he darted left, then right, then left again. Then he went backward a couple of steps and darted back to his right, leaving defenders sprawled on the turf as he broke free into the end zone.

“That one in the Denver game, that’s almost impossible to do,” said Vermeil. “Dante Hall has come out of the blue. It’s always more exciting for a young man who never expected to make it. He was overwhelmed when he first heard it.”

Hall, who also has a 60-yard touchdown catch against Jacksonville, said he just “took off running” when Vermeil gave him the news.

“I couldn’t believe it. Something just told me to run,” Hall said. “I can’t put it into words. As a kid growing up, you just want to get to this level. And to think about the Pro Bowl? It’s just unbelievable. The Lord’s blessing me right now.”

Holmes led the NFL in rushing last season and was leading this year when a hip injury put him out for at least this weekend’s game. He received 747,297 fan votes, second in the overall fan vote behind only Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre.

He leads the NFL with 1,615 yards rushing, breaking the franchise record of 1,555 yards he set last season. He also has 21 rushing TDs, three shy of the NFL single-season record.

It’s the eighth straight trip to the Pro Bowl for Shields, who was taken in the third round of the 1993 draft out of Nebraska and has started 157 straight games, the third-longest active streak in the NFL.

It will be the eighth Pro Bowl appearance for Roaf and caps an inspirational comeback. He was named to the elite squad seven times as a member of the New Orleans Saints.

Roaf joined the Chiefs in March in a trade with New Orleans after undergoing the kind of reconstructive knee surgery that has ended many careers.

“When you go through that type of injury and the rehab you always think in the back of your mind, ‘Am I going to get back on the field and be able to play?”‘ Roaf said.

Of all his Pro Bowl selections, Roaf said, “This is the most satisfying.”

“I’m at peace now with everything that’s gone on, with the guys and everything,” Roaf said. “Being 32 and coming back, this season is the most satisfying of all of them.”

Gonzalez will be making his fourth straight Pro Bowl appearance. He leads the Chiefs with seven receiving TDs and ranks second in both catches (53) and receiving yardage (673).