The 2010 No. Seymour made it to seven Pro Bowls and three All-Pro teams and hasn't made it to the Hall of Fame, but Thomas was more conspicuous at safety and was a key member of a legendary defense. Elroy 'Crazylegs' Hirsch, future Hall of Fame wide receiver, led the best draft class in Rams history in 1945. Ngakoue has deserved more attention and might get it in a new locale if the Jaguars honor his request and trade the 25-year-old before the season begins. The players listed below are the top 250 HOFm-rated players who played WR starting in 1955 or later for at least 50 career games. Minnesota Vikings Ring of Honor. One issue: Five of those six are running backs, with Randy Moss as the only exception. 2 with 6,103 yards. Jaguars won't spend big, but here are five players they could target in free agency, 2023 NFL franchise tag tracker: Raiders tag Josh Jacobs, the NFL's rushing leader. Gore is third in career rushing yards, which owes much to the fact that he also ranks third in carries. The first game of the 2023 NFL calendar is . Za'Darius Smith might have been the best pass-rusher in the league last season and has been great over the past two years on a snap-by-snap basis, but he turns 28 in September. Cliff Branch and Herman Moore are two of the few exceptions, but their performance fell off significantly after their third All-Pro trip and never recovered to their prior level. In the running (40% to 69%): S Eddie Jackson. If you want to know why people are excited about the Cowboys' offense in 2020, consider that they could have as many as five future Hall of Famers lining up when everyone's healthy. Beasley won a sack title. From 2000-2003, Randy Moss put up video game numbers: 376 receptions, 5,649 yards and 49 touchdowns. If he can stay healthy, he's probably going to retire in the top 10 for career passing yardage, but will that really be enough to get him in without more individual awards or team success? Last season, Thomas became the second wide receiver to win Offensive Player of the Year. He shared a receivers room with four Hall-of-Famers and caught balls from a pair of Hall-of-Fame quarterbacks in Peyton Manning and Kurt Warner while playing in eight post-season games . Work to do (10% to 39%): DE Yannick Ngakoue. You could make a case Jones belongs in the Likely category based on his 2017 and 2019 seasons, although I'd argue there's a significant gap between those two campaigns and the rest of his career. Matthew Freedman poses and answers the burning question about Evans' future Hall of Fame chances. Suggs logged 139 sacks, good for eighth all-time. With the onset of COVID, the Pro Football Hall of Fame last year moved its annual board-of-selectors meeting from an in-person session the day before the Super Bowl to a virtual communication . By Paul Mclane . Likely (70% to 99%): S Earl Thomas. He is a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, joining Lawrence Taylor as the only three-time winners of the award. Let's run team-by-team and try to estimate each notable player's chances of making it to the Hall of Fame given his current rsum. All but Gronkowski generated controversial off-field headlines, but the Hall voters only debate what is accomplished on the field. The one-time tight end has made nine Pro Bowls and was a first-team All-Pro twice. These three Pats legends are more likely to land in the Hall of Very Good. The former star wide receiver on Thursday was not elected in his second time as a modern-era finalist in as many years of eligibility. The former Ozen High star and 14-year NBA vet has more on his mind than basketball, offering essays on life, his family and America. Stafford posted gaudy numbers earlier in his career when the Lions had him lead the league in attempts, but he has made it to one Pro Bowl and hasn't won a playoff game in 11 seasons. Peterson, fifth all-time in rushing yards (14,918), is a good bet for election on the first ballot. This trio is. No offensive lineman is ever a lock when guys like Faneca still aren't enshrined, but Smith plays the most prominent position on the line for the most popular team in the league. Hekker got a two-season head start, but he has been a first-team All-Pro four times before turning 30 in February. Of the 27 Hall-eligible players who have pulled that off, 14 are enshrined. Joe Fortenbaugh breaks down why Julio Jones is the safer bet over DeAndre Hopkins to lead the league in receiving yards. Collins retired with 70 touchdown receptions, sixth-best total in NFL history at the time and more than Hall of Fame receivers Lynn Swann, Art Monk, Bobby Mitchell, Michael Irvin and John Stallworth. You probably dont need me to tell you that in 2018 Moss became the most recent receiver to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. So Johnson still has plenty of time for his credentials to be debated by the 49-person selection committee. Meanwhile on offense, receiver Allen Robinson's three-year, $46.5 million contract (signed last spring) comes with $15.2 million guaranteed in 2023. One more nomination should get Smith in. Five seasons of 100 receptions or more plus a few others that flirted with 100 make Johnson one of the most reliable wide receivers in NFL history. We still have no idea how Thomas will perform, but if we look back through history, four of the 32 offensive linemen since 1970 who were drafted with a top-five pick have made it to the Hall of Fame. Joe Fortenbaugh isn't picking Odell Beckham Jr. to lead the NFL in receiving yards, but he expects Kevin Stefanski's scheme to improve the wide receiver's numbers in 2020. There aren't any Dolphins who would appear to have greater than a 10% chance of making the Hall of Fame. In the running (40% to 69%): QB Lamar Jackson, CB Marcus Peters, K Justin Tucker. At the combine, he measured in at 6-foot-5 and 231 pounds and ran an impressive 4.53-second 40-yard dash. He looked to be firmly on a Hall trajectory at that point, but over the ensuing five seasons, he has just one Pro Bowl appearance. While Pro Bowls and All-Pro awards are hardly gospel, they're the best measure we have of how league observers valued a particular player in his time. We present them here for purely educational purposes. Its not at all random that hes become a big-time NFL player. The Bucs already have the best receiver duo in the NFL in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, and the addition of a player like Brown in his prime would make this unit completely unfair. With three rushing titles, a 2,000-yard season and an MVP award in his trophy room, Peterson will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Early in a player's career, I'm also comfortable using draft status as an estimate of talent until they establish themselves as pros, which will lead to some very inexperienced players making this list. Mack is entering what is likely to be his final season with the Falcons. Membership Foundation Corporate Partners Artifact Donations Commemorative Brick . Members of the Ring of Honor are recognized with a banner on the facade of the Metrodome's upper deck, forever living in Vikings lore. McShay's favorite pick for all 32 teams Work to do (10% to 39%): LB Tremaine Edmunds. It hasn't been for lack of trying on his part, though. The former Philadelphia Eagles great and St. Louis Rams star will become the 28th and 29th wide receivers to be honored with a place in Canton, OH. He should have a very strong case for election. They both need multiple All-Pro seasons before they can rise up the ranks. When: 1999-2004 These two probably had the greatest four-year stretch in NFL history. Its rattlesnake season in Texas. The Museum of Broadcast Communications also named its first 33 "Legends" inductees, one for each year of the hall's . The others are Moss, Keenan Allen and Amari Cooper. Published: August 24, 2021. He's an easy Hall of Famer. Sensing that many people might disagree with me, I decided to post a poll on Twitter. I haven't included players who I believe have no more than a 10% chance of making it into the Hall. Brees could have retired five years ago and comfortably made the Hall of Fame. Copyright 2023 Action Network Inc, All Rights Reserved.Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | AdChoices. I would put Gronkowski's chance somewhere around 99%. The former LSU corner was already a star on the field after his 2018 campaign, but getting that first nod is usually tougher than getting invited back. Work to do (10% to 39%): RB Le'Veon Bell, LB C.J. Hes No. Longtime teammate Jeff Bagwell, meanwhile, had to wait until his seventh year on the ballot before gaining enshrinement to Cooperstown. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. In fact, a future Hall of Fame wide receiver recently revealed that Rodgers tried to recruit him over to the Packers. Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon both expect Frank Gore to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but do not see him as a lock to get into Canton. I polled my Twitter followers and found that 42.6% of voters thought Rivers was a Hall of Famer. Elliott should be a prohibitive favorite to get in. Do you have a blog? SEA | TB | TEN | WSH. Collins was a Defensive Player of the Year candidate in 2016 and has three Pro Bowls across his first five seasons. NE | NO | NYG | NYJ | PHI | PIT | SF I addressed this in my MVP column in July. I'm right there in the 50/50 range. Future Hall of Fame wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, though, has a different team in mind for Rodgers. Even if Hopkins takes a step backward without Deshaun Watson, he's probably just a couple of Pro Bowls from getting in. He has the third most sacks through his age-25 season of any player since the league made it an official stat in 1982, trailing only Derrick Thomas and J.J. Watt. Hightower has made huge plays in two Super Bowls, having stuffed Marshawn Lynch at the 1-yard line and strip-sacked Matt Ryan, but he has rarely gotten the regular-season attention he deserves. He just turned 26 in August. Orlovsky sounds off on Wentz not making top 100 list. While Witten, 38, is years removed from his peak, he's going to finish his career with 11 Pro Bowl appearances and two first-team All-Pro nods. Syndication Packersnews Work to do (10% to 39%): WR Adam Thielen, LB Anthony Barr. A portion of ticket purchases is a tax-deductible charitable donation to the Museum . Lock (100%): QB Patrick Mahomes. Some players draw more attention after getting traded or signing a big extension, and Buckner did both this offseason. Just six of 32 Hall-eligible winners made it to Canton, although that's going to rise in the years to come as the likes of Charles Woodson and Julius Peppers win enshrinement. Pro Football Reference's Hall of Fame monitor ranks Edelman 110th among wide receivers, and that gives him credit for winning three Super Bowls. Cox has made five consecutive Pro Bowls, although only one of those seasons resulted in a first-team All-Pro nod. Inductees Nominees Induction Weekend Induction Process Landmark Award Squier-Hall Award Blue Jacket & Class Ring. Heyward reminds me a lot of Campbell; they're prototypical five-technique ends who upped their pass-rushing performance when given more opportunities to get after the quarterback. He was nearly a lock after making four Pro Bowls and three first-team All-Pro nods across his first five seasons, but injuries have cost Thomas 20 games over the subsequent four years. Kelce is difficult to judge because tight ends aren't well represented in the Hall. Harris has four Pro Bowls and a first-team All-Pro appearance in 2016, but his play has slipped over the past couple of years, and smaller cornerbacks typically don't do well after they turn 30. Roethlisberger won two Super Bowls with the Steelers and spent 18 seasons as Pittsburghs starter. Like Hill, if Kelce gets three more seasons with Mahomes, I think he's a Hall of Famer. The Hall of Fame receiver responded with a $100 million defamation lawsuit. Six of the seven men ahead of him are in the Hall, with the exception of Peppers. Inside linebackers generally need to become Defensive Player of the Year candidates and earn multiple first-team All-Pro appearances to get serious consideration for Canton, but Edmunds is off to a great start. Work to do (10% to 39%): WR Mike Evans, WR Chris Godwin, LB Lavonte David. Wilson hasn't missed a game as a pro, so as long as he plays another five or six seasons and continues to rank among the better quarterbacks in football, he should be fine. Worthy Hall of Fame (HOF) NFL Wide Receivers: The shoo-ins Let's start by running through five obvious cases of overly-qualified receivers who have not yet been enshrined. Pro Football Hall of Fame Hall of Fame Village. podcast, future Hall of Fame wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, aware of the Raiders and Jets being interested in trading for the always-grumbling MVP. He also earned two major awards: Defensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year the following season. We're in a pass-happy era, but Thomas has more receptions (470) and receiving yards (5,512) than any other players in league history through their first four seasons. Just play along. Likely (70% to 99%): WR Tyreek Hill, TE Travis Kelce. In the running (40% to 69%): QB Deshaun Watson. Rodgers is a three-time All-Pro, a member of the 2010s All-Decade Team and so much more. Hill's game still relies on speed, so he could be more susceptible to a career shortened by injuries than most other candidates, but if he gets three more seasons with Mahomes, he's probably in. Nelson doesn't play a high-profile position, but he's off to a great start. "Nuk" has been a first-team All-Pro in each of his past three seasons, which is the sort of run that earns skill-position players a trip to Canton on their own. In the running (40% to 69%): S Jamal Adams. Seymour has a better rsum and more Super Bowl rings and hasn't made it in, but he peaked earlier in his career; if Campbell can stay productive and win a ring or two with the Ravens, it might push him into more significant consideration. But history tells us that's a lot to ask. Lock (100%): QB Ben Roethlisberger. Likely (70% to 99%): QB Matt Ryan, WR Julio Jones. Watson has earned Pro Bowl nods in each of his first two full seasons as a starter, which is easier for quarterbacks than it is for most other positions. To use an example, I don't think Eli Manning has the rsum of a Hall of Fame quarterback, but history tells us that most quarterbacks who win two Super Bowls typically get in. Eagles fans will be furious, but the reality is that Wentz has made one Pro Bowl and hasn't won a playoff game or led the league in a major statistical category (outside of fumbles) during his first four seasons. Work to do (10% to 39%): WR Julian Edelman, LB Dont'a Hightower, S Devin McCourty. That's just about a magic formula for getting into the Hall. One more Pro Bowl would probably do the trick. Marcedes Lewis has been in the NFL for a long time. Work to do (10% to 39%): QB Matthew Stafford, CB Jeff Okudah. He needs only three more years to get to 60,000 passing yards, and if that gets Philip Rivers in, Ryan shouldn't have much trouble. The Notre Dame product probably needs a second one to have a viable shot at Canton. Do you have a sports website? Matthew Freedman (@MattFtheOracle) November 4, 2019. Work to do (10% to 39%): QB Joe Burrow. Art Monk. Fitzpatrick went from getting benched for the Dolphins in Week 1 to becoming a first-team All-Pro after his arrival in Pittsburgh; another year like 2019 will push him into Watt territory. He might not make it on the first ballot, but he should make it eventually. On Saturday night, Eagles star Harold Carmichael and Rams star Isaac Bruce were inducted as part of a . He doesn't need that sort of individual production to make it to the Hall of Fame, but the guys who made it in without a single first-team All-Pro appearance needed something else. If Wagner makes it to another Pro Bowl or two, I don't think Willis' status will matter. He also came up with an interception while winning his first Super Bowl, which helps his case. NFL Nation: Analysis for every pick He previously worked as the sports editor at the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. Kamara was also Offensive Rookie of the Year, which helps his chances further. Over that five-year span, Landry ranks third in the NFL in catches and seventh in receiving yards. Green. His case is very strong for a first-ballot election. I think the PED suspensions could help keep out players like Edelman and Lane Johnson, but it's tough to imagine Peterson not making it. 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Bell's case as a scheme- and personnel-transcendent back fell apart in an ugly 2019 season, with the former Steelers playmaker averaging just 3.2 yards per carry. Unless he turns things around dramatically this season, he would fall out of the "Work to do" category altogether. Hes too similar to other Hall-of-Famers and future Hall-of-Famers not to be taken seriously. Author: Nate Greer. He has now made three consecutive Pro Bowls, although his only first-team All-Pro nod came in 2017. While injuries have cost Watt 32 games over the past four seasons, his unprecedented four-season peak from 2012 to 2015 locked up things. will Evans play and how productive will he be? Mahomes' rsum -- a league MVP and Super Bowl MVP -- is usually enough to get a player into the Hall of Fame, let alone doing it over two seasons as a starter. Watt is off to a dominant start, having racked up 34.5 sacks over three seasons while earning two Pro Bowl nods and a first-team All-Pro berth last season. But during his 15-year career, Lewis has only been a Pro Bowler and Second-Team All-Pro in 2010. Only two full-time kickers Jan Stenerud and Morten Andersen are in the Hall of Fame, but it would be hard to see Vinatieri shut out given his accomplishments. The Saints have the best tackle combination in football, but Armstead went underappreciated before picking up steam over the past couple of years and Ramczyk raised his game in 2019. Or write about sports? Also, if a guy enters the league at a young age, he could theoretically have a longer NFL career, which would give him more time in the second half (or post-peak portion) of his career to put up the accumulation stats often needed to bolster a Hall-of-Fame case. So maybe the best thing for Johnson and Texans fans is to be patient. The 2020 No. Thielen only emerged as a starter after turning 26, which means he would have to play into his late 30s to have a chance at racking up the cumulative stats modern wide receivers will need for enshrinement. Regardless of age, Evans has had an impressive start to his career. Heres what you need to know. Work to do (10% to 39%): QB Baker Mayfield, DE Myles Garrett. He started his career with seven Pro Bowls in seven seasons, which is rarefied air. All HOFm Positions: QBRBWRTEGTCDTDEILBOLBDBKP, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 2:32PM. 19 Won't: Maurice Jones-Drew More on the Ring of Honor found on the team website. Lock (100%): LB Von Miller. Aldon Smith, who was once the most promising young edge rusher in football, would need a miraculous comeback in his first season since 2015 to get back on the HOF radar. Assessing Browns' FA needs. In the running (40% to 69%): RB Todd Gurley. Try selecting a different location. It's possible to make the Hall of Fame as a lineman without an All-Pro appearance, but the only guy to do it since the merger is Jackie Slater. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. If Brown has a Whitworth-esque autumn to his career, he has a shot. He has been phenomenal while winning one Super Bowl, and came within an interception of winning a second, but he has also never been considered the best quarterback in football or garnered a single MVP vote. Work to do (10% to 39%): OT Terron Armstead, OT Ryan Ramczyk. The 49ers' two-decade-plus string of Pro Bowl quarterbacks and near-two-decade run of employing an all-time receiving talent abruptly stopped in 2004. The Nebraska product nearly won a Super Bowl with the Rams in 2018, but a win with the Bucs and one more All-Pro appearance would greatly help his chances. Only Chandler Jones and Aaron Donald have more sacks since the start of 2017. Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch, future Hall of Fame wide receiver, led the best draft class in Rams history in 1945. He repeated that feat in 2019, but he'll need to have Campbell's longevity and continue at this level into his mid-30s to have a viable path to the Hall. He's in line behind guys like Atkins unless the USC product continues to make Pro Bowls deep into his 30s. Unless he really hangs on into his 40s, he'll finish as the second-most-productive tight end in history, behind Tony Gonzalez. Graham's case is interesting. He also has worked at the Austin American-Statesman and Temple Daily Telegram. I think his five-year peak with the Seahawks probably would have been enough to get him in, but earning a sixth Pro Bowl trip with the 49ers last season only helped his chances. Xavien Howard made the Pro Bowl in 2018 and would be the best candidate, but he has missed an average of six games per season across his four pro campaigns. I've split players into four groups. People in favor of him will point to his stats, which are clearly better than those of Eli Manning, but that ignores the point; Manning isn't getting into the Hall because of his regular-season stats. He ranks seventh all-time in receiving touchdowns (116), 30th in yards (11,841) and 17th in receptions (955). Rockets great and championship coach Rudy Tomjanovich was only inducted in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021. to put up the accumulation stats often needed to bolster a Hall-of-Fame case. He turned 32 on Friday, and while there could be more left in the tank, he probably needs another Pro Bowl season or two to ensure he makes it. Newton has an MVP award, which goes a long way toward pushing any player into the Hall of Fame. Kittle is the best all-around tight end in football right now, and if you could tell me this minute that he would have a 12-year career, I'd expect him to be a Hall of Famer. What will define Eric Bieniemy's success? Buy Seahawks Tickets. The star inside linebacker made his first Pro Bowl last season, which is incredible given that it was his age-21 season. Leonard, with one All-Pro spot and a Pro Bowl appearance last year, is right behind. Likely (70% to 99%): DT Geno Atkins. McCaffrey is still only 24 and has a relatively sterling health history, so it's on him to buck history. Of the 16 Hall-eligible first-rounders who were first-team All-Pros as rookies, nine are enshrined. There could still be a season in which Mike Zimmer needs to use Barr as an edge rusher and he ends up with 10 sacks, but that's not going to be enough. In the running (40% to 69%): C Maurkice Pouncey, LB T.J. Watt. But given the relatively small number of modern-era inductees each year a minimum of three and maximum of five now is a good time to look at the ballot in upcoming years and notable players wholl become eligible for election and may impact Johnsons fate with voters. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. Nelson is one of seven players to start his career with two consecutive first-team All-Pro nods, a group that includes four Hall of Famers, Devin Hester and Keith Jackson. Erica Farber and Bill Siemering, prominent figures in U.S. commercial radio and public radio, respectively, are among eight new members of the Radio Hall of Fame. Bosa's case is trickier, in part because he missed four games in 2016 and nine games in 2018 with injuries. Of the nine corners who have debuted since the NFL-AFL merger and made the Hall of Fame, just two had been a first-team All-Pro by their third season, which puts White in good company alongside Rod Woodson and then-corner Ronnie Lott. Honestly, the biggest factor holding Evans back right now is his team: The Bucs dont attract a lot of national attention, and they havent been to the postseason since 2007. Lock (100%): DE J.J. Watt. As long as Willis gets in, Wagner could retire tomorrow and follow his former rival right through the front door. His time may come, but maybe not for a while. Wagner also has a Super Bowl victory and, quite famously, an MVP vote from Tony Dungy on his rsum. 1 pick and winning Offensive Rookie of the Year, but that hasn't historically been a helpful combination. Charley Taylor. It's tough to rack up interceptions in the modern NFL, but Peters has 27 since entering the league, nine more than any other player. In the running (40% to 69%): WR Odell Beckham Jr., WR Jarvis Landry. The two first-time eligible players who stand out on next years ballot are defensive end Julius Peppers and tight end Antonio Gates. Gates numbers compare very favorably with those of the nine tight ends in the Hall. Elliott has already won two rushing titles across his first four seasons, and that might be enough on its own. Work to do (10% to 39%): WR T.Y. Lock (100%): DT Aaron Donald. Landry's hip surgery then looms as a problem; if he can get past it and keep this up, he profiles as a borderline Hall of Famer. In the running (40% to 69%): OT Trent Williams. With Anthony Harris hoovering up interceptions and Jamal Adams and Minkah Fitzpatrick emerging, 31-year-old Smith probably needs to earn that nod in the next year or two.