HOF Semi-Finalist List

[APB]

The list of 25 modern era semi-finalists for induction into the NFL HOF was released. Of these 25, it is estimated 4-8 will eventually be selected.

To keep it simple, name your 6 HOF inductees.

[Pckfn23]

QB Eli Manning
LB Luke Kuechly
WR Steve Smith Sr.
S Earl Thomas
K Adam Vinatieri
DE Jared Allen
LB Terrell Suggs
TE Antonio Gates
G/T Marshal Yanda
LB James Harrison
DT Vince Wilfork
OT Willie Anderson
WR Torry Holt
WR Anquan Boldin
WR Reggie Wayne
G Jahri Evans
S Rodney Harrison
CB Eric Allen
DE Robert Mathis
RB Fred Taylor
WR Hines Ward
RB Ricky Watters
OT Richmond Webb
G Steve Wisniewski
S Darren Woodson

[Cdragon]

Well looking at pro-football-ref only 6 of them are at or above the average for the HOF monitor I'd go:

Luke Kuelchy
Torry Holt
Antonio Gates
Reggie Wayne
Steven Smith Sr.

I'm leaving out the kicker. He can get in next year.

The only reason Eli is considered is the 2 rings.

[APB]

I just noticed there isn't a single Packer listed except for end-of-career Jahri Evans. Hmph.

Anyway, my six:
Steve Smith
Luke Kuechly
Antonio Gates
Reggie Wayne
Adam Vinatieri
Tory Holt

I hate putting Vinatieri on that list but I think he gets in as a sports writer nerd favorite.

I'd love to put James Harrison on the list but, while dominant for a few glorious years, he spent several years refining his skill and technique. His career numbers just didn’t accumulate enough while in his glory years to warrant selection.

I don’t know enough about the O-linemen to attempt a guess but one of them will probably get in based on history.

Reggie Wayne should send Peyton Manning a thank-you bottle of champagne every HOF game weekend for the rest of his life. He was good but Manning elevated him to great just on shear volume.

Steve Smith is my favorite from the bunch. The ultimate competitor and just a dawg of a teammate.

[lupedafiasco]

Man that’s a strong list this year, especially at WR.

I’d say
Kuechly - best player on this list IMO.
Holt
Gates - Easily the 3rd best TE of the modern era behind Gronk and Gonzo.
Wayne
Thomas - Maybe controversial but I think Thomas was by far and away the best S almost his entire career. 3 1st team all pros and 2 2nd teams.
Suggs - I think the DPOY and DROY really give him the edge. It can’t be all offense getting in.

I went Holt and Wayne over Smith and Bolding. Holt had the better highs while playing with a worse QB for half his career. Wayne always had a great supporting cast around him with one of the best QBs ever.

[APB]

I went Holt and Wayne over Smith and Bolding. Holt had the better highs while playing with a worse QB for half his career. Wayne always had a great supporting cast around him with one of the best QBs ever.

Holt having poor QB play for half his career is still better than what Smith had to deal with for the majority of his career...and Smith still outperformed him. The best QB play Smith ever saw was Jake Delhomme. And you could realistically argue Smith made Delhomme, not the other way around.

[NCF]

QB Eli Manning
S Earl Thomas
K Adam Vinatieri
DE Jared Allen
LB Terrell Suggs
TE Antonio Gates

That's my 6. The WR group is tough. Still hold the Sterling Sharpe comparison to these guys and none of them could hold a candle to him. Holt, Wayne, and Boldin spent a good chunk of their formative years as the second best WR on their own team. These are volume guys. It's worth something, but not first ballot HOF, to me. Steve Smith stands out the most, but was probably the least talented of the 4. I wanted to leave Eli off, but what's the point, voters won't. Those two SB's are worth their weight in gold. Kuechly the best player I left off, but he doesn't have longevity on his side.

Get Sterling in. Ron Wolf has been quoted as saying during his time in GB, there was, at most, 4 HOF worthy players. You don't have to be a genius to realize that is Brett, Reggie, LeRoy, and Sterling.

[Cdragon]

Kuechly was Def Rookie of the Year. Def Player of the Year, and AP 6 out of 7 years only missing his rookie year. That's pretty much as impressive as Sharp as both had too short of a career.

[Papa John]

Eli
Vinatieri
Earl Thomas
Gates
Wilfork
Kuechly

[Cdragon]

Jared Allen wouldn't be on my list. I've never seen him actually beat a decent LT. Cliffy certainly owned him. Good motor but not close to HOF worthy to me.

[Papa John]

I haven't seen Wilfork on anyone else's list. I will go to bat for him. He was the anchor of the Patriots defense for 11 years. He played the position at the highest level and was extremely durable- played in all 16 games in 8 out of 11 seasons with New England. He was the very rare combination of talent and grit. Vince Wilfork makes the very short list of Papa's Heroes- he damn well deserves to be in the NFL Hall of Fame.

[Yoop]

Yanda, best in era played by a long shot,
Kuechly, same
Thomas, debatably the same
Wayne, same
Suggs, consistent with 2 key awards
and steady Eddie Eli Manning, to good to long, and with pedigree, pedigree matters

with a quick investigation, these are my 6

[lupedafiasco]

I went Holt and Wayne over Smith and Bolding. Holt had the better highs while playing with a worse QB for half his career. Wayne always had a great supporting cast around him with one of the best QBs ever.

Holt having poor QB play for half his career is still better than what Smith had to deal with for the majority of his career...and Smith still outperformed him. The best QB play Smith ever saw was Jake Delhomme. And you could realistically argue Smith made Delhomme, not the other way around.

I hear you but something has to be said for putting up a 1600 yard season twice. Only 6 other players have ever done that and 2 of those are from the 17 game era. That’s HOF worthy IMO. I think that puts him in a different conversation than Smith.

[APB]

I went Holt and Wayne over Smith and Bolding. Holt had the better highs while playing with a worse QB for half his career. Wayne always had a great supporting cast around him with one of the best QBs ever.

Holt having poor QB play for half his career is still better than what Smith had to deal with for the majority of his career...and Smith still outperformed him. The best QB play Smith ever saw was Jake Delhomme. And you could realistically argue Smith made Delhomme, not the other way around.

I hear you but something has to be said for putting up a 1600 yard season twice. Only 6 other players have ever done that and 2 of those are from the 17 game era. That’s HOF worthy IMO. I think that puts him in a different conversation than Smith.

If he did it as the feature offensive player, then yeah, absolute stud. But he did it with Marshall Faulk as the feature player of the offense, Isaac Bruce as a co-WR1, and oh, also had a HOF QB throwing the ball.

I still think he was a stud, mind you, but more of a product of the offense he played in and the players he played with. Still a great player but he had an easier path.

Smith, on the other hand? He was the focus of the offense…and defense…had decent but middling QBs most of his entire career and still killed it. A measurably challenged player who dominated his opponents. A guy who would fight his mother for a first down.

Love me some Holt but if I’m picking a player for my roster, it’s Smith all day long.

[RingoCStarrQB]

I'm more interested to see if Sterling makes it this time.

QUARTERBACKS (3): Ken Anderson, Charlie Conerly, Jim Plunkett.
RUNNING BACKS (5): Ottis Anderson, Roger Craig, Chuck Foreman, Cecil Isbell, Paul "Tank" Younger.
WIDE RECEIVERS (5): Billy "White Shoes" Johnson, Stanley Morgan, Art Powell, Sterling Sharpe, Otis Taylor.
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN (7): Ox Emerson, Joe Jacoby, Mike Kenn, Bob Kuechenberg, George Kunz, Jim Tyrer, Al Wistert.
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN (2): Jim Marshall, Harvey Martin.
LINEBACKERS (5): Carl Banks, Maxie Baughan, Larry Grantham, Clay Matthews Jr., Tommy Nobis.
DEFENSIVE BACKS (4): Lester Hayes, Albert Lewis, Eddie Meador, Everson Walls.
In this step of the process, each committee member voted for 25 players. The top 25 and all other candidates who tied for the 25th position advance to the third phase – the cutdown vote to nine (9) Semifinalists. Those results will be determined and announced in about three weeks.

[NCF]

@RingoCStarrQB

FYI - CMJ is CM3’s father that played for the Browns. Maybe you knew that but seems like you highlighted Packers in the senior list.

[RingoCStarrQB]

@RingoCStarrQB

FYI - CMJ is CM3’s father that played for the Browns. Maybe you knew that but seems like you highlighted Packers in the senior list.

I just copied and pasted the Senior list. Thanks for clarifying the difference between Jr and III.

[Yoop]

I haven't seen Wilfork on anyone else's list. I will go to bat for him. He was the anchor of the Patriots defense for 11 years. He played the position at the highest level and was extremely durable- played in all 16 games in 8 out of 11 seasons with New England. He was the very rare combination of talent and grit. Vince Wilfork makes the very short list of Papa's Heroes- he damn well deserves to be in the NFL Hall of Fame.

same with Marshall Yanda, no one put one of the all-time best Guards on their list either, lineman get no love

[salmar80]

I haven't seen Wilfork on anyone else's list. I will go to bat for him. He was the anchor of the Patriots defense for 11 years. He played the position at the highest level and was extremely durable- played in all 16 games in 8 out of 11 seasons with New England. He was the very rare combination of talent and grit. Vince Wilfork makes the very short list of Papa's Heroes- he damn well deserves to be in the NFL Hall of Fame.

same with Marshall Yanda, no one put one of the all-time best Guards on their list either, lineman get no love

There are positions that pop off the stat sheet and feature on highlight reels, and those positions where you have actually watch entire games, not just highlights, to form an actual informed opinion.

I feel there are SO many great WRs who crush the stats of eras past with ease, that finding those who really stood above everyone else and/or transformed the position in some way, is very hard.

I'd start with:
Kuechly
Yanda
Wilfork
Gates
Earl Thomas
And then I'd put all the WRs in a rink and have 'em battle it out. Maybe Smith.

Vinatieri is deserving, but I'm in no hurry with him.

I would not put Eli in ever. He was never on an All-Pro team. Ever. 4 Pro Bowls don't cut it. Championships are team accomplishments.

[NCF]

QB Eli Manning
S Earl Thomas
K Adam Vinatieri
DE Jared Allen
LB Terrell Suggs
TE Antonio Gates

That's my 6. The WR group is tough. Still hold the Sterling Sharpe comparison to these guys and none of them could hold a candle to him. Holt, Wayne, and Boldin spent a good chunk of their formative years as the second best WR on their own team. These are volume guys. It's worth something, but not first ballot HOF, to me. Steve Smith stands out the most, but was probably the least talented of the 4. I wanted to leave Eli off, but what's the point, voters won't. Those two SB's are worth their weight in gold. Kuechly the best player I left off, but he doesn't have longevity on his side.

Get Sterling in. Ron Wolf has been quoted as saying during his time in GB, there was, at most, 4 HOF worthy players. You don't have to be a genius to realize that is Brett, Reggie, LeRoy, and Sterling.