We have not mentioned it here at Notinhalloffame.com but the Football Hall of Fame Seniors’ Committee nominated two men who hold a strong ranking on our Football rank.
Punter, Ray Guy and Defensive End, Claude Humphrey have been selected as the two Senior Nominees. Unlike the last few years, both Guy and Humphrey shined brightest in the 1970’s, whereas past Senior’s nominees were from either the 50’s and/or 60’s.
This isn’t the first time that Humphrey has appeared as a nominee. In 2009, he was on the ballot with Bob Hayes, who was selected. Humphrey was a dominating force for the Atlanta Falcons, and twice was a First Team All-Pro and a Second Team selection three times. He was an impact player immediately, capturing the Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 1968 and would finish with 122 credited Quarterback Sacks. Only Dick Stanfel has been nominated by the Senior Committee twice without securing a spot in Canton. The odds of Claude Humphrey being the second aren’t strong.
Out of the 51 men (and we are counting men who have been selected twice) who have been named as a Senior nominee, 38 have been admitted as a Football Hall of Fame nominee. Those are pretty good odds, wouldn’t you say? Humphrey may be the man on the ballot for the second time, but that is not where the attention is focused. That is going towards Punter, Ray Guy.
Kickers and Punters are the second tier of Professional Football. They aren’t the same size, they don’t get the glory when they help their team win but take the brunt when their squad loses. Amazingly, with all of that against the Punter, there has been a push to induct Ray Guy, who revolutionized the position during his tenure with the Raiders.
Blog after blog has proclaimed that Ray Guy’ omission from the Hall of Fame is a travesty, despite how much the sport looks down upon special teams; an opinion that exists among many fans. With all of this said, this is the exception to the rule. With the exception of Guy, there has been no push from any Football media to select any other Punter for the Hall of Fame, and there probably never will be again. It is not like Guy has not been heavily considered before, as he was a Hall of Fame finalist seven times (1992, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2007 & 2008). In terms of accolades, he certainly fits the Canton bill.
Ray Guy was the first (and to date, only) Punter ever selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. Guy was chosen by the Oakland Raiders, and though fans initially did not see the value in drafting a pure special teams player that high in the draft, it was proven that this was a man who was going to revolutionize the position.
It was alleged that because of Ray Guy, that the National Football League started to keep track of Hang Time; returning teams found his punts near impossible to return. 210 of his career punts were within his opponents’ 20 Yard Line. His skills indirectly led the Raiders to the first line of defence in games. Guy was named to the 1970’s All-Decade Team, Six Pro Bowls, Three First Team All-Pro Teams and the 75th Anniversary Team.
Even more importantly, the legacy of Ray Guy is growing. Often time diminishes performance, but Guy has become a strange anomaly; a man who defies rules despite the red headed stepchild syndrome of special teams stereotypes. Despite being only a “Punter”, the popular conception is that he belongs in the Hall of Fame; even if no other kicker ever follows him in.
Something tells us that the special teams bias is going to buckle in 2014.
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