With Warner’s retirement the Hall of Fame discussion begins

by | Jan 29, 2010 | Hall of Fame, NFL Random Thoughts

This topic has been addressed before both here and in other places, but now, as Kurt Warner’s career comes to an end (assuming he doesn’t become the next Brett Favre) the debate surrounding arguably one of the most interesting Hall of Fame case studies out there can begin in earnest.

Warner finishes his career with 208 touchdown passes, which doesn’t put him in the top 20 all-time. With 32,344 yards passing, he falls short of the top 20 there, as well.

He was named to four Pro Bowls and was a first team All-Pro just twice. That’s also decent but not overwhelming.

On the other hand, the man led the league in completion percentage and yards per attempt in 1999, 2000 and 2001. He led in touchdown passes in 1999 and 2001 and yards in 2001, as well.

More importantly, he took three teams to Super Bowl appearances in 12 seasons, winning one with the Greatest Show on Turf and coming close in the other two.

Especially impressive, to me anyway, was the third one last year when he took the long moribund Arizona Cardinals on a playoff ride to remember. He came within a couple minutes of leading the Birds to an upset over the far superior Pittsburgh Steelers.

Now, he wasn’t especially durable. In the 11 seasons starting with the year he took over the helm in St. Louis through this year, he played 16 games just three times. But it’s also important to remember that the accomplishments he did compile started in 1999 when he was already 28 years old.

So, there’s a synopsis. Do the ring and multiple Super Bowl appearances win out? Or does the late start to Warner’s career keep him out?

Does Super Bowl season put Brees in Hall of Fame talks?

by | Jan 25, 2010 | Hall of Fame

I just returned home from an NFC Championship game party where I watched my Minnesota Vikings blow yet another opportunity to go to the Super Bowl. While the purple did a pretty decent job of bottling up Drew Brees tonight, he’s coming off back-to-back fantastic regular seasons. And he was The Man last week against Arizona.

During the game one of my friends raised the question of whether or not Brees has put himself into Hall of Fame discussion. While he was mostly just solid in San Diego for four seasons, he’s been fantastic in New Orleans the last four.

He eclipsed 5,000 yards  passing last season and has 34 touchdowns in back-to-back campaigns. He’s been to four Pro Bowls and he’s been a first team All-Pro. And after tonight he’s earned a trip to the Super Bowl.

Brees’ can’t match Kurt Warner, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre or Tom Brady yet in terms of rings. But I was surprised to see that he’s right on Brady’s tail in terms of passing yards and just a couple thousand behind Warner in the same category. And he is right in the mix with them in touchdowns as well. He’s got a long way to go to catch Manning or Favre, both in those categories and in Pro Bowls and All Pro teams. But he would seem to be inching toward the discussion.

What do you all think? Is he on his way to Canton, Ohio? Or, if not, what does he have to do to get there? And will your opinion change if he leads the Saints to a win in two weeks in Miami?

Ed Reed Considering Retirement

by | Jan 18, 2010 | Hall of Fame

Following the Baltimore Ravens 20-3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday, Ed Reed revealed that he is considering retiring after another difficult season that saw him miss time due to injuries.

Reed’s name has come up in conversations surrounding Pro Football Hall of Fame worthiness on Zoneblitz before, with opinions ranging from “Will get in if he continues at the same level” to “Already has a stamped ticket.”

But what do people think now that he’s considering retirement?  Five Pro Bowls, four All-Pros, two time NFL leader in interceptions, 46 career interceptions, 8 career touchdowns (6 on interceptions, 2 on fumble recoveries), at least two interceptions returned for TD of over 100 yards…but also only 8 seasons played, a couple of which he missed time due to injuries.

While I don’t really think that 2009 will be Reed’s last year, let’s say for a minute that he does hang up the cleats–does he make it to Canton or not?

Hall of Fame Announces 2010 Finalists

by | Jan 8, 2010 | Hall of Fame, We Forgot

The finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2010 were announced on Friday, with three first-year eligible players heading the group:

Jerry Rice – Wide Receiver – 1985-2000 San Francisco 49ers, 2001-04 Oakland Raiders, 2004 Seattle Seahawks

Emmitt Smith – Running Back – 1990-2002 Dallas Cowboys, 2003-04 Arizona Cardinals

Tim Brown – Wide Receiver/Kick Returner – 1988-2003 Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders, 2004 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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Fan’s Choice Hall of Fame Semifinalists

by | Nov 29, 2009 | Hall of Fame

Earlier this season, the Hall of Fame and Van Heusen announced that fans would finally have a voice in the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection process.  While unclear what role the fan voting at FansChoice.com would actually have, the results of the first round of voting were announced late yesterday, after the actual 2010 Hall of Fame Semifinalists were announced.

There were a total of 11 differences between fan voting and the actual semifinalist lists.  Unfortunately, in my opinion, the results expose some flaws in the way voting is being handled on the Fan’s Choice site.

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2010 Pro Football Hall of Fame Semifinalists Announced

by | Nov 28, 2009 | Hall of Fame

The Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2010 Semifinalists were announced on Saturday, with four players who are eligible for the Hall for the first time joining 21 others who have all been semifinalists at least once before.  The list was culled from an original list of 131 players, coaches and contributors.

The four first timers include WR Jerry Rice, RB Emmitt Smith, WR Tim Brown and CB Aeneas Williams.

Looking back at last year’s list of semifinalists, only two players not elected last year fell off the list–G Bob Kuechenberg  and QB Kenny Stabler, both of whom failed to make the cut last year in their final year of eligibility, and now can only be elected by the senior committee (Kuechenberg last played in 1983, but was on injured reserve for the 1984 season).

Also making it back to the list of semifinalists this year are WR Cliff Branch, Coach Don Coryell, and LB Rickey Jackson.

No big surprises on the list, from where we stand–Branch and Coryell being minor surprises, along with possibly the omission of Gary Anderson (in some people’s eyes)–and at this point, all of our 2010 finalist guesses and actual inductee predictions are still in the running.

What were everyone else’s thoughts/surprises from the  list?