Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2010

[Don]

Emmitt Smith, Jerry Rice, Russ Grimm, John Randle, Dick Lebeau, Rickey Jackson, and Floyd Little.

To me, this is long overdue for one of the Hogs to be inducted and Russ Grimm was most deserving. Couldnt be happier for Russ.

[roxfan00]

Congrats to Floyd Little!

[BBTV]

Ricky Jackson? He was active while I was really getting in to football, and I remember him as one of the Saints awesome four linebackers (RickeyJackson, Sam Mills, Vaughn Johnson and Pat Swilling) and yeah - dude was really good. But HOF? Maybe I missed too much of his career (I really noticed him in 91 I think) but I didn't think he was a HOFer (apparently neither did the voters, since it took this long.)

[infrared41]

They got three right anyway. Grimm, Smith, and Rice. The rest have me wondering what the hell they're serving at those secret meetings. Rickey Jackson was really good. How he managed to get inducted into the HOF is beyond me. Especially when guys like Andre Reed are still waiting. The Pro Football Hall of Fame is really starting to look an awful lot like The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...and that's not a good thing.

[Cujo]

Dick Lebeau?... Are you :censored:ting me??

I'm sorry, but Lebeau has only been great as an assistant. He couldn't cut the mustard when he was given the chance to run whole damn show in Cincy. Not sure how the voters can stick a coordinator in the HOF before electing a single punter.

[WJMorris3]

Let's make that a single kicker or punter, Curty - remember, Lou Groza was a tackle, and George Blanda a quarterback.

[infrared41]

Let's make that a single kicker or punter, Curty - remember, Lou Groza was a tackle, and George Blanda a quarterback.

Does this guy ring a bell?

Hall of Fame Class of 1991.

[Don]

Dick Lebeau?... Are you :censored:ting me??

I'm sorry, but Lebeau has only been great as an assistant. He couldn't cut the mustard when he was given the chance to run whole damn show in Cincy. Not sure how the voters can stick a coordinator in the HOF before electing a single punter.

I think LeBeau was inducted as a player and not a coach...

[dfwabel]

Dick Lebeau?... Are you :censored:ting me??

I'm sorry, but Lebeau has only been great as an assistant. He couldn't cut the mustard when he was given the chance to run whole damn show in Cincy. Not sure how the voters can stick a coordinator in the HOF before electing a single punter.

LeBeau was voted in primarily as a player. Dude, check his stats; 62 career INTs. He was a corner opposite of Night Train Lane and Lem Barney for most of his career. Both of those guys are in the Hall. As a coach, the zone blitz is his. No problem there.

Ricky Jackson's stats are equal to Lawrence Taylor's, really they are. His ring with the 49ers got him more cred overall.

Doleman over Charles Haley stuns me. Nobody has more rings than Haley, plus, he made the Dallas defense a champion. The year before he was traded, Dallas ranked 17th in defense, the next season (1992) they kept nine starters, added Haley and rookie Robert Jones. They moved up to 5th and won a Super Bowl.

Offesnive players make up over 50% of the HoF, non-players (execs/coaches) another 20%. There is little account or credit given to defensive players. In this big stat, ear, it will continue.

[BBTV]

If he was voted in as a player, why wasn't he voted in any of the first X number of years he was eligible? Same with Jackson - how many times did voters say "nah, brah" but now all of a sudden he's up there next to Jerry Rice?

[dfwabel]

Defensive players generally do not get in. LeBeau and Little were Veterans Committee selections. The members of the comnittee also bring the veterans to the overall committee. Basically, Rick Gosselin (the great NFL writer from the Dallas Morning News) did not talk about Emmitt today since Rick is a member of the Vertans Committee, today he talked about LeBeau.

From his Tuesday column.

Five is a key number for Charles Haley in the selection process this weekend for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2010.

And it's not the obvious five ? those Super Bowl rings he collected with the 49ers and Cowboys.

It's the presence of only five defensive players on the ballot.

The numbers have long been out of whack in Canton. There have been 214 men enshrined in the Hall of Fame in the game's modern era. More than half (50.9 percent) of them played on offense ? but only 30.4 percent on defense and 18.2 percent coaches and contributors.

The NFL axiom is that defense wins championships, but it obviously doesn't get you inducted into Canton. There are 109 offensive players enshrined and only 65 defensive players. In fact, there are more offensive skills players ? 68 quarterbacks, running backs and receivers ? than all defensive players combined.

That disparity in numbers gives Haley reason for hope in his first trip as a finalist. A maximum of five modern-era candidates will be selected for the Class of 2010, and Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith already have claims on two of those spots.

But there has been a trend in recent years to close the gap between offense and defense in the Hall. The last two years marked the first time in history that back-to-back classes have featured more defensive enshrinees than offensive.

So I'm speculating that two of the remaining three spots in the Class of 2010 would go to defensive players. There are only five defensive candidates: pass rushers Haley and Richard Dent, tackles Cortez Kennedy and John Randle and linebacker Rickey Jackson.

As one candidate in a slate of 15, Haley would stand less than a 10 percent chance of being included in the Class of 2010. But as one candidate in a slate of five defenders, his chances could increase to 20 percent.

[dfwabel]

Defensive players generally do not get in. LeBeau and Little were Veterans Committee selections. The members of the comnittee also bring the veterans to the overall committee. Basically, Rick Gosselin (the great NFL writer from the Dallas Morning News) did not talk about Emmitt today since Rick is a member of the Vertans Committee, today he talked about LeBeau.

From his Tuesday column.

Five is a key number for Charles Haley in the selection process this weekend for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2010.

And it's not the obvious five ? those Super Bowl rings he collected with the 49ers and Cowboys.

It's the presence of only five defensive players on the ballot.

The numbers have long been out of whack in Canton. There have been 214 men enshrined in the Hall of Fame in the game's modern era. More than half (50.9 percent) of them played on offense ? but only 30.4 percent on defense and 18.2 percent coaches and contributors.

The NFL axiom is that defense wins championships, but it obviously doesn't get you inducted into Canton. There are 109 offensive players enshrined and only 65 defensive players. In fact, there are more offensive skills players ? 68 quarterbacks, running backs and receivers ? than all defensive players combined.

That disparity in numbers gives Haley reason for hope in his first trip as a finalist. A maximum of five modern-era candidates will be selected for the Class of 2010, and Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith already have claims on two of those spots.

But there has been a trend in recent years to close the gap between offense and defense in the Hall. The last two years marked the first time in history that back-to-back classes have featured more defensive enshrinees than offensive.

So I'm speculating that two of the remaining three spots in the Class of 2010 would go to defensive players. There are only five defensive candidates: pass rushers Haley and Richard Dent, tackles Cortez Kennedy and John Randle and linebacker Rickey Jackson.

As one candidate in a slate of 15, Haley would stand less than a 10 percent chance of being included in the Class of 2010. But as one candidate in a slate of five defenders, his chances could increase to 20 percent.

[BlueSky]

There's a new criteria being used...number of facemask bars.

But seriously, had Rickey Jackson played for a successful team you guys would probably be calling his selection a no-brainer. He was as good as Lawrence Taylor, or damn close, and aside from the other LBs, he didn't have nearly the supporting cast. He had 128 sacks and any from his first year weren't counted because sacks weren't yet an official stat. He was an every-down LB and played special teams too.

I think former 49er Roger Craig probably has a better perspective than any of us keyboard commandos, and he said of Jackson and his 'Dome Patrol' teammates:

===

"Those four guys were the most dominant linebackers ever to play the game. I'm so happy they're getting their just due. The other three need to follow Rickey now. They deserve to be there."

===

Very gracious, especially from a guy who was a HOF finalist himself this year and didn't make it. Steve Young also commended Jackson's selection. And remember, in 1992 all four Saints LBs went to the Pro Bowl. Never before, never since. So in the immortal words of Deion Sanders, "don't hate - appreciate."

What I'd give for a time machine. If you could field today's Saints offense and their late 1980's D...wow. I'd like their chances against anybody. And I mean anybody. Roger Craig again:

===

"Had they had an offense, had Drew Brees, they would have won four or five Super Bowls in the '80s with that defense they had."

===

If only!

Congratulations to the entire 2010 HOF class, and may Jackson's selection be an omen of things to come Sunday evening.

[wdm1219inpenna]

Did anyone else watch the HOF 2 hour show on NFL Network yesterday? I did, and it was a really really REALLY exceptionally well-done program. It was dragged out a bit, but overall it was really terrific to watch, and I echo Rich Eisen's sentiments, that they should do this EVERY year! It was awesome seeing Rice & Smith together, and also the likes of Floyd Little sitting among them talking, etc. Add in Steve Sabol's voice & NFL Films and it's spectacular. When it comes to this kind of presentation, the NFL does it so very well and so completely right, especially the day before the Super Bowl. Simply marvelous, I hope they have this show on every year!

[MDC]

And still no Richard Dent...........

[dmr]

Most Seahawks in a Hall of Fame class, 2 (J.Rice and J.Randle) woohooo!!! Doubles the number of Seahawks in the Hall of Fame, now 4 (S. Largent, F. Harris, J. Rice, and J. Randle)

I know, I know, only Largent and Randle were Seahawks for more then one season.

~~the dmr~~

[Sport]

Dick Lebeau?... Are you :censored:ting me??

I'm sorry, but Lebeau has only been great as an assistant. He couldn't cut the mustard when he was given the chance to run whole damn show in Cincy. Not sure how the voters can stick a coordinator in the HOF before electing a single punter.

Like others have said, he's going in as a player. Also, you can't hold his time as Bengals head coach against him. That team lacked so much talent that a lot of good head coaches would've had a hard time winning more than 12 games in 3 years.