Pro Football Hall of Fame Announces Nominations for Class of 2008
October 30, 2007 by David Kindervater
Filed under Pro Football HOF
Photo courtesy Pro Football Hall of Fame
Blogging the National Football League, Blogging the NFL
The Pro Football Hall of Fame released a list of 124 modern-era players, coaches, and contributors who make up the preliminary list of nominees for election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2008 today. From this preliminary list of modern-era nominees, Hall of Fame selectors will choose 25 candidates who will advance as semifinalist nominees. The list of 25 modern-era semifinalists will be announced later next month. The 25 modern-era semifinalists list will then be reduced by a mail ballot to 15 modern-era finalists. The final list for Hall of Fame consideration will consist of those 15 modern-era nominees plus two previously announced senior nominees, Marshall Goldberg and Emmitt Thomas.
Here’s the preliminary list of nominees for the Class of 2008:
NOMINEES IN FIRST YEAR OF ELIGIBILITY
WIDE RECEIVERS – Cris Carter, Herman Moore
RUNNING BACK – Eric Metcalf (also WR/KR/PR)
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN (TACKLES) – Tony Boselli, Lomas Brown, Richmond Webb
LINEBACKERS – Levon Kirkland, Hardy Nickerson
DEFENSIVE BACK – Darrell Green (CB)
ADDITIONAL NOMINEES FOR THE CLASS OF 2008
QUARTERBACKS – Ken Anderson, Randall Cunningham, Boomer Esiason, Jim Plunkett, Phil Simms, Ken Stabler, Joe Theismann, Danny White, Doug Williams
RUNNING BACKS – Ottis Anderson, Roger Craig, Terrell Davis, Herschel Walker, Ricky Watters
WIDE RECEIVERS – Cliff Branch, Harold Carmichael, Dwight Clark, Gary Clark, Isaac Curtis, Henry Ellard, Roy Green, *Art Monk, Drew Pearson, *Andre Reed
TIGHT ENDS – Mark Bavaro, Todd Christensen, Ben Coates, Russ Francis, Brent Jones, Jay Novacek
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN – Jim Covert (T), Dermontti Dawson (C), *Russ Grimm (G), Jay Hilgenberg (C), Kent Hill (G/T), Chris Hinton (G/T), Kent Hull (C), Joe Jacoby (T), Mike Kenn (T), *Bob Kuechenberg (G), Jim Lachey (T), Mark May (T/G/C), Randall McDaniel (G), Jeff Van Note (C), Steve Wisniewski (G), *Gary Zimmerman (T)
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN – Ray Childress (DT/DE), *Fred Dean (DE), *Richard Dent (DE), Chris Doleman (DE/LB), Jacob Green (DE), Charles Haley (DE/LB), Jim Jeffcoat (DE), Ed “Too Tall” Jones (DE), Cortez Kennedy (DT), Joe Klecko (DE/DT/NT), Fred Smerlas (NT)
LINEBACKERS – Cornelius Bennett, Matt Blair, Robert Brazile, Randy Gradishar, Kevin Greene (LB/DE), Ken Harvey, Rickey Jackson, Wilber Marshall, Clay Matthews, Karl Mecklenburg, Sam Mills, Pat Swilling, Darryl Talley, *Derrick Thomas, *Andre Tippett
DEFENSIVE BACKS – Eric Allen (CB), Steve Atwater (S), Joey Browner (S), LeRoy Butler (S), Raymond Clayborn (CB), Nolan Cromwell (S), Kenny Easley (S), Lester Hayes (CB), Albert Lewis (CB), Ken Riley (CB), Donnie Shell (S), Louis Wright (CB)
KICKER/PUNTERS – *Ray Guy (P), Nick Lowery (K), Reggie Roby (P)
SPECIAL TEAMS – Elbert Shelley (S), Steve Tasker (WR)
COACHES – Don Coryell, Tom Flores, Jimmy Johnson, Chuck Knox, Buddy Parker, Clark Shaughnessy, Ernie Zampese
CONTRIBUTORS – K. S. “Bud” Adams, Jr., Gil Brandt, C. O. Brocato, Leo Carlin, Ed DeBartolo, Jr., Pat Haggerty, Bob Harlan, Jerry Jones, Bucko Kilroy, Art McNally, Art Modell, Art Rooney, Jr., Ed Sabol, Steve Sabol, *Paul Tagliabue, Jim Tunney, Ralph Wilson, Jr., Ron Wolf, George Young
What an impressive list. In looking through these names, I realize what a truly impossible task it is to select which players make it into the Hall. As good as some of these players might have been at their professional football careers, it takes a bit of luck to be elected.
*On 2007 17 finalists list
ken stabler long overdue.
Darryl Talley was the most amazing player EVER! hello! his fans even became famous “Talley-Whackers”. If it wasn’t for Darryl Talley half of the buffalo bills wouldn’t have the carer they have today. vote DARRYL TALLEY in the HALL OF FAME!!!
1. In his 15 year career, Ken Stabler won one Super Bowl, was a 1st team all pro once, a pro bowler 4 times, was an admittedly larger-than-life character, and had approximately 4 great seasons surrounded by 11 pretty average ones. It’s not clear to me why he deserves enshrinement over Ken Anderson, for starters.
2. Darrell Talley? Seriously? He has no 1st team all-pro selections and 2 pro bowls in his 14 year career. Why is he more qualified than Andre Tippett, Karl Mecklenburg, Chris Spielman, Clay Matthews, Cornelius Bennett, Charles Haley (also DE), Wilbur Marshall, Sam Mills, Rickey Jackson, and Kevin Greene, all of whom have more of both? In fact, it may be a challenge to get any of these guys in as they’re pretty similar on that score. Logjams of this kind often seem to result in no one breaking through, from what I’ve seen.
No running back has ever ran harder than Ricky “Raging” Watters. Let him in. He is my childhood hero. Ricky Watters is the best there ever was.
Ricky Watters, while a very good running back, likely won’t get elected. And to say he’s “the best there ever was” simply doesn’t fly. His numbers don’t look anywhere near as good as Marshall Faulk’s, for starters, who likely will get in the HoF when he’s eligible:
G RUSH YDS TD REC RECYD RECTD
176 | 2836 12279 100 | 767 6875 36
For Watters:
G RUSH YDS TD REC RECYD RECTD
144 | 2622 10643 78 | 467 4248 13
Very good to be sure, but just not at Faulk’s level. And I’m not even sure Faulk would be considered hands-down the best RB ever compared to Jim Brown, Walter Payton, or Emmitt Smith, for three.
My top 4 picks:
Cris Carter, Richard Dent, Russ Grimm, Derrick Thomas
Then 2 more from the following:
Guy, Haley, Jacoby, Green, Monk, Kuechenberg, McDaniel, Gradishar
And probably either Tags or Young makes it too.
If Irvin made it into the Hall of Fame, so should Andre Reed, arguably one of the best receivers of his era. Without Reed, Kelly and Thomas would not be Hall of Famers.
Someone above said that Bennett was more deserving than Talley as a HOF candidate. As a long time Bills fan I can tell you that Talley was much more of an impact player and consistent throughout his career. Sure, he didn’t go to pro bowls, but look at his yearly totals in tackles. Unreal.
And, I won’t leave out Steve Tasker and Kent Hull.
GO BILLS!
Daniel wrote:
“If Irvin made it into the Hall of Fame, so should Andre Reed, arguably one of the best receivers of his era. Without Reed, Kelly and Thomas would not be Hall of Famers.
Someone above said that Bennett was more deserving than Talley as a HOF candidate. As a long time Bills fan I can tell you that Talley was much more of an impact player and consistent throughout his career. Sure, he didn’t go to pro bowls, but look at his yearly totals in tackles. Unreal.
And, I won’t leave out Steve Tasker and Kent Hull.”
Several points:
1. I’ll agree that Andre Reed belongs in the HoF. His stats make him reasonably competitive to varying degrees with folks like Michael Irvin (who is in), and Art Monk (who isn’t but probably should be).
2. Cornelius Bennett was a 1st team all-pro once (in 1988), a 5 time Pro Bowler (1988, 1990-1993), and appears on the all-90s team. Darryl Talley has 2 Pro Bowl appearances (1990-1991), no 1st team all-pro selections, and appears on no all-decade teams. These kinds of honors make a huge difference regarding who does and does not get into the HoF. Of the 16 LBs in the HoF, only Ray Nitschke (3/1) and Sam Huff (2/5) have all-pro/pro bowl honor numbers anywhere near as low as Bennett or Talley, and both Nitschke and Huff appear on all-decade teams. I suspect it will be hard enough for Bennett to get in, never mind Talley, who hasn’t a prayer.
3. If the HoF ever does induct a special teams specialist, Steve Tasker will be the one who makes it and would likely be the most deserving, though folks who say that ex-Cowboy Bill Bates was Tasker’s equivalent from an earlier era when special teamers didn’t get pro bowl or all pro recognition have a reasonable point. But the HoF hasn’t been kind to punters, kickers, or other such folks — all the kickers and punters in except for Jan Stenerud played a field position. I suspect Tasker will have a rough time making it in.
4. Kent Hull (2/3 in all pro/pro bowl numbers) will almost certainly fall short as will Jay Hilgenberg (2/7) and Mark Stepnoski (0/5 plus all 90s team). Dermontti Dawson (6/7 plus all 90s team) has by far the strongest case from this era and will probably get in but has had to wait a bit thus far. If for some odd reason Dawson falls short, the others won’t have anything remotely resembling a prayer.
What about Herschel Walker?! This is the “Pro Football” Hall of Fame, not just the NFL Hall of Fame. If you combine his total yards in the USFL and NFL he blows everyone else who has ever played professional football out of the water by over 3,000 yards. How can the guy who has moved the football farther than anyone on earth not be in the Hall of Fame?
Herschel Walker is actually a better HoF candidate than people think. His career NFL rushing yards are pretty respectable if not top shelf, and he also amassed sizable yardage on receptions and kick returns; in fact, he currently stands 8th all time in combined net yardage. I’m not sure his USFL stats are useful here, as most HoF electors will likely consider the competition in that league to be subpar. Despite the name, in practice the Pro Football Hall of Fame has always been heavily slanted towards the NFL, with some weight given towards exceptional AFL and AAFC players — especially those who continued to play well after league mergers.
But with some HoF electors grumbling about Jerome Bettis’s worthiness (though I’d bet he’ll get in after a bit of a wait), that does not bode well for Walker.
Ive been a cowboys fan since i was a kid during the days of roger staubach, if michael irvin got iand lynn swann got into the HOF.Then DREW PEARSON needs to get in too!!! yes,andrea reed and terrell davis and OWENS will be in the HOF…
I love the herschel walker trade, that help my team win more superbowl..not sure if hes getting into the hof…i need to check his stats…he was NOT all that great when he played at min and philly.
Drew Pearson is in a logjam with several other very similar 70s era WRs, specifically Harold Carmichael, Cliff Branch, Isaac Curtis, and Harold Jackson. It seems the HoF voters are unable to distinguish between them in worthiness and as a result it seems none will get in unless nominated as Seniors.
Lynn Swann is a rather weak HoF choice because of his short career but made it in (on his 14th try as a finalist, most of any HoF inductee) because of the 4 Super Bowl rings. Usually, only hall-of-the-very-good QBs get this kind of leg up — only Swann and Hornung of non-QBs have gotten such a boost for postseason appearances. Also note that any argument that compares the supposed snub to one of its weakest members is not a good one.
For the rest mentioned, Irvin certainly belongs in, Reed probably belongs in and may or may not make it, Owens has a good shot at getting in, and Davis may likely have problems as he’s basically a less accomplished version of Gale Sayers (who had 5 great seasons to Davis’s 4 — both played 7 seasons — with no kick return advantage for Davis).
Ricky Watters does deserve an eventual nomination, although it would help if he was a little more humble and gracious when the subject arises. It is not up to an individual player to decide wether or not they desreve to be in the HOF. Regardless of his shortcomings, Ricky’s stats and passion for the game are more then deserving of enshrinement. Good luck Watters!!! I would love to see you join the legends of the game!
Derrick Thomas needs to be inducted, not only to honor his career, but his unfortunate death and what could have been.
Sterling and Shannon Sharpe should go in together. They were both tremendous on the field, and continue to be tremendous as analysts.
Jerry Kramer was named the best guard in the first 50 years of pro- football. One of the “Immortals”. Every other one of that group, but him, is in the Hall of Fame.
Check his history. Horning and Tayor both say he was a main reason for their success and should be in the “H of F”. The sports writers are jealous of him. He wrote a best seller, (something they would give their front row seat in hell to be able to do) then he wrote another one. They can’t stand it.
Everyone, but the “Committee”, says he was the best at his position. We need a new committee.
Chris:
I’m guessing Shannon Sharpe gets into the HoF within the first year or so of eligibility. Sterling Sharpe unfortunately had his career cut short by injury, and despite good stats probably won’t get in. Ability as analysts doesn’t count towards HoF worth. And I did address Watters’s stats above, which won’t likely be good enough to get him in.
Marvin:
While I wouldn’t squawk if Jerry Kramer gets in, his HoF candidacy has several problems, including the perception that the all-first-50-years team he appeared on was a botch-job, the perception that he wasn’t even the best guard on his own team (such folks say it was Gale Gillingham or Fuzzy Thurston), a career punctuated with significant injury absence (half of 1961 and most all of 1963), and only 3 pro bowl appearances despite 5 1st team all pro teams made.
Herschel Walker, Terrell Davis, and Derrick Thomas..and let’s not forget Art Monk! All of these gentlemen deserve enshrinement…:D
Art Monk got in this year.
And they’re likely making Derrick Thomas wait a few years because while he was considered a fine pass rusher, he was not considered strong against the run or in pass coverage.
Take a good look….
+ means higher rank; _ means lower rank
Andre Reed vs WW by rank:
+ _ RECEPTIONS/GAME
+ _ YARD/GAME
_ + (rank 1) YDS/RECEP
_ + TDs/Game
RUSHING
+ _ Rushing/Yds/Game
_ + (rank 1) Yds/Attempt
_ + TDs/Game
TOTALS
+ _ Yds/Game
_ + TDs/Game
_ + Fumbles/Game
COMMENT: WW out ranks Reed 6 times. Reed does not hold rank 1 in any category. WW holds rank 1 in two categories. Reed is in the 2008 HOF lists. Wells is not. Take a good look, using mathematics!
source: Quantitative Analysis, dated 5.18.08
Herschel Walker was a GREAT football player. While his years in the USFL may not count completely, they should count for something. His NFL stats are very impressive. He is 8th in all purpose yards. In 12 NFL seasons, Walker gained 8,225 rushing yards, 4,859 receiving yards, and 5,084 kickoff-return yards.[11] This gave him 18,168 total combined net yards, ranking him second among the NFL’s all-time leaders in total yardage at the time of his retirement; as of the start of the 2007 NFL season, ten years after his retirement, he still ranks eighth.[12] He also scored 84 touchdowns: 61 rushing, 21 receiving and two kick off returns for touchdowns.[11] Walker is the only player to have 10,000+ yards from scrimmage and 5,000+ return yards (all of which were on kickoff returns). He is the only player to gain 4,000 yards three different ways: rushing, receiving, and kickoff returns. He is one of six players (Jim Brown, Lenny Moore, Marcus Allen, Marshall Faulk, and Thurman Thomas) to exceed 60 touchdowns rushing and 20 touchdowns receiving. Another NFL record he possesses is that he is the only player with a 90+ yard reception, 90+ yard run, and a 90+ yard kickoff return all in the same season (1994). He is also the only player to record an 84+ yard touchdown run and an 84+ yard touchdown reception, in the same game (December 14, 1986). That same day, he had 100 yards rushing and 100 yards receiving. Walker is currently ranked eighth all time in all-purpose yards with 18,168, despite spending his first three seasons in the USFL.