Vontaze Burfict was once tabbed as a First Round Pick when he was at Arizona State, but a poor attitude and an even weaker combine resulted in all 32 teams passing on the Linebacker in the 2012 Draft.  The Bengals signed him as an undrafted player, and that polarizing aura that he had as a Sun Devil followed him as a Bengal.

Burfict made the Bengals and was the starting Right Linebacker in the third game of his pro career.  He would record 127 Combined Tackles as a rookie, and in his second season, Burfict went to the Pro Bowl in a season where he led the NFL in Combined Tackles (171).  The first two seasons of Burfict's career were good, but the history of his poor temperament would rear its ugly head.

In 2014, a concussion cost him time, and he was fined continuously for illegal hits.  He appeared in more games in 2015 and had a good year, but he is mostly known for delivering a blow to Antonio Brown late in the AFC Wild Card Game when the Wide Receiver was considered defenseless.  An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty followed this penalty by Adam Jones, and the 30 combined yards led to a successful Field Goal attempt by the Steelers who won the game.

Burfict remained a dynamic linebacker for the Bengals over the next three seasons, but he never came close to a full season due to suspensions.  He was released after the 2018 Season, and joined Oakland, but he was again suspended, this time for a helmet-to-helmet hit in the fourth week.  Due to his past infractions, he was suspended for the rest of the season, and he never played in the NFL again.

While his career was riddled with controversies, when he was on, few Linebackers could touch him.

The third player in Baltimore Ravens history to win the AP Defensive Player of the Year, Terrell Suggs is the all-time franchise leader in Quarterback Sacks with 131.5 and in Forced Fumbles with 33. Suggs was also the Defensive Rookie of the Year (2003) and he would play for the Ravens for 16 seasons before signing with the Arizona Cardinals before the 2019 season.  The exceptionally versatile defender would be selected for seven Pro Bowls and was a key figure in the Ravens Super Bowl XLVII championship.  Suggs would leave Baltimore having played 229 Games and is one of the best defensive players in franchise history.

Suggs 132.5 Sacks and 229 Games are the most in Ravens history.  After a season split with Arizona and Kansas City, he won a second Super Bowl as a Chief.  He entered the Ravens Ring of Honor in 2022, and as of this writing is the all-time leader in Tackles for Loss (202), and he had 139.0 Sacks in total, currently placing him in the top 15 overall.

Days after the Houston Astros were crowned the 2022 World Series Champions, the Baseball Hall of Fame announced the eight Contemporary Baseball Hall of Fame ballot candidates. 

Of the former players nominates, should any of the receive at least 75% of the vote from the 16-member Committee, they will enter Cooperstown!  The Committee will be meeting on December 4.

Here are the nominees:

Albert Belle:  Belle was a five-time All-Star and Silver Slugger and was named by The Sporting News as the Player of the Year in 1995.  He had 381 Home Runs and a lifetime Slugging Percentage of .564.  Ranked #61 on Notinhalloffame.com and was on the ballot for two years, peaking a 7.7% in his first year in 2006.

Barry Bonds:  The controversial slugger set the all-time mark for Home Runs (762) and in a single season (73) while winning seven MVP Awards.  A 14-time and 12-rime Silver Slugger, Bonds is also the all-time leader in Walks (2,558) and boasts a lifetime OPS of 1.051.  Ranked #1 on Notinhalloffame.com and was on the ballot for ten years, finishing as high as 66.0% in his final year, 2022.

Roger Clemens:  Clemens has the same level of polarization that Bonds has, only he was a Pitcher.  A seven-time Cy Young winner and 12-time All-Star, Clemens has the World Series Rings (2) that Bonds does not have, and we think it is a safe bet that he will be the last 350-Win Pitcher in Baseball.  Clemens, who also has 4,672 Strikeouts, is also a two-time Major League Player of the Year.  Ranked #2 on Notinhalloffame.com and was on the ballot for ten years, with his highest total coming in 2022, 65.2%, his last year on the ballot.

Don Mattingly:  Arguably the greatest New York Yankee to have never won a World Series Ring in the Bronx, Mattingly won a Batting Title (1985), twice led the AL in Hits, and had a lifetime Batting Average of .307.  He is also a nine-time Gold Glove winner and three-time Silver Slugger.  Ranked #35 on Notinhalloffame.com, “Donnie Baseball” was on the ballot for 15 years with his peak coming in year one (28.2%) in his first year (2001).

Fred McGriff:  The “Crime Dog” is not closely associated with one team, which overall hurts his Hall of Fame chances, nor does the fact that he played in an era with offensively charged First Basemen, hence why he is “only” a five-time All-Star.  McGriff had 493 Home Runs, and had he made 500, would we be having this conversation?  Ranked #27 on Notinhalloffame.com, McGriff was on the ballot for ten years with his highest tally coming in 2019, 39.8%, his last year of eligibility.

Dale Murphy:  Murphy won the National League MVP in both 1983 and 1984, where the seven-time All-Star smacked 398 Home Runs over his career.  Ranked #30 on Notinhalloffame.com, Murphy was on the ballot for 15 years, with his highest tally coming in 2000 (23.2%), Murphy’s second year on the ballot.  

Rafael Palmeiro:  Palmeiro is one of only three players who had 3,000 Hits and 500 Home Runs over his career, and he was named the Major League Player of the Year in 1999.  The First Baseman was a four-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger, and like others on this list, he is associated with PEDs, though unlike others, he was caught.  Ranked #20 on Notinhalloffame.com, Palmeiro was only on the ballot for four years, with the highwater mark in 2012 (12.5%), his second year of eligibility.

Curt Schilling:  Schilling might be the most contentious former player of this group and think of what that means!  Likely ousted on the regular ballot due to his anti-media stance and right wing beliefs, Schilling failed to make it past the ten years on the ballot, peaking on his penultimate year, 2021 with 71.1%.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate the former baseball stars who have made it to this stage.

Reshad Jones played the entire decade of the 2010s with the Miami Dolphins (the only team he ever played for), and the Georgia Bulldog was arguably one of the most underrated Defensive Backs during that time.

Jones became a starting Safety for the Fins in his second season, and while his play could be inconsistent, he was a two-time Pro Bowl Selection, who had 21 Interceptions over his Dolphins career.  In three separate seasons, Jones had well over 100 Tackles and had 776 overall.