The Pro Football Hall of Fame is one of the most revered shrines in all of professional sports and is one of the toughest to get voted into. A group of athletes took another step closer to enshrinement on Friday, as the hall announced the 15 modern-era finalists for this years class.
Former New York Giants defensive end and NFL single-season sacks leader Michael Strahan made the cut, as well as four first-year eligible linemen, including tackle Jonathan Ogden and guard-tackle Larry Allen. The rest of the finalists include defensive tackle Warren Sapp, running back Jerome Bettis; receivers Cris Carter, Tim Brown and Andre Reed; LB-DEs Charles Haley and Kevin Greene; guard Will Shields; defensive back Aeneas Williams; coach Bill Parcells; and owners Edward DeBartolo Jr. and Art Modell, the former Ravens owner who passed away last year.
The two senior nominees are defensive tackle Curley Culp and linebacker Dave Robinson.
The main group of finalists was whittled down from 121 nominees who were eligible for the first time. Voting will take place on Feb. 2, 2013, which is the day before the Super Bowl in New Orleans, and will result in four and seven new members being elected to the Hall.
Located in Canton, Ohio, the Pro Football Hall of Fame was opened in 1963 and features 267 members that are selected by a 44-person committee, mostly made up of sportswriters. Hall of Fame rules state that a player can be eligible for voting after having been retired at least five years. The rules also state that Fans may nominate any player, coach or contributor by simply writing to the Pro Football Hall of Fame via letter or email.
To enter the Hall of Fame a finalist must receive at least 80 percent support from the Board, with at least four, but no more than seven, candidates being elected annually.
New York Giants defensive end Michael Strahan has a good chance to make it in on his first shot after setting the record for sacks in a season. He finished his career with 141.5 career sacks, 794 career tackles, 4 career interceptions, 21 forced fumbles and 2 career touchdowns in 200 games while making seven Pro Bowls. His stats stand out against the other players in the class at his position and he has played in two Super Bowls, winning one with the Giants in 2008.
Last year the class included running back Marshall Faulk, defensive end Richard Dent, NFL Films founder Ed Sabol, tight end Shannon Sharpe and cornerback Deion Sanders.
Following last year's voting, there is a logjam at wide receiver, with players like Chris Carter, Andre Reed and Tim Brown still eligible to get in. Other players left over from last season include running back Jerome Bettis, defensive back Aeneas Williams and defensive end Charles Haley.
The wide receiver position has given the Hall a conundrum in recent years and will not get any better if the voters decide not to put in at least one of the three between Chris Carter, Andre Reed and Tim Brown. Both Carter and Brown are in the top five all-time in NFL career receptions with 1,101 and 1,094 respectively, while Reed ranks in the top 10 with 951.
Carter has one of the best resumes of any player not yet in the Hall, adding 13,890 receiving yards and 130 touchdowns to his career receptions total. Brown was also considered to be one of the best receivers during his time, scoring 100 touchdowns while gaining nearly 15,000 reception yards.
Ogden and Allen were two of the best offensive lineman of their era, while Bettis is one of the most productive running backs of all-time, ranking high on the career list with 13,662 yards and 91 touchdowns over his 13-year career. Bettis won a Super Bowl with the Steelers and rushed for at least 1,000-yards in six straight seasons from 1996 to 2001.
Shields was one of the most consistent and durable lineman of his era, playing with the Kansas City Chiefs from 1993 to 2006. Shields played in all 16 games each season for the majority of his career and blocked for running back Priest Holmes while rushing for over 1,420 yards for three straight seasons from 2001 to 2003.
Modell is one of the most interesting candidates, as many voters may still hold the fact that he moved the Browns from Cleveland to Baltimore against him. Modell passed away at 87-years-old last year of natural causes.
Modell was the majority owner of the Browns and Ravens for over 40 years from 1961-2003. During his tenure he oversaw 18 playoff teams and two championships, one with the Browns in 1964 and with the Ravens in 2000. He is known for his controversial decision to move the Browns to the East coast and was instrumental in developing the NFL and growing the league through television.
"I think that part of my legacy is I left the colors, the name and the records in Cleveland," Modell said in the past, according to the Associated Press. "The fans in Cleveland were loyal and supportive. They lived and died with me every Sunday for 35 years."
His impact on the league was arguably as big as any player on the list of Hal candidates and he spent four decades as an NFL owner after buying the Browns in 1961 for $4 million. The team won the NFL Championship in 1964 and continued to be one of the best teams during the decade. The Browns also played in the title game three more times, in 1965, 1968 and 1969.
The 12 semifinalists who did not advance to the final vote included kicker Morten Andersen, safety John Lynch, cornerback Albert Lewis, safety Steve Atwater, coach Don Coryell, running backs Roger Craig and Terrell Davis, tackle Joe Jacoby, linebacker Karl Mecklenburg, former commissioner Paul Tagliabue, special teamer Steve Tasker and executive George Young.
The news about the Pro Football Hall of Fame comes just days after the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown announced that no candidates would be inducted for the 2013 class.
