We have openly professed our admiration for the election structure of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and have even patterned are Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame (as well as our upcoming Fictitious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame) after it. As such, Pro Football Hall of Fame Weekend is a big deal to us and we are going to sit back in revel in the pageantry of the gridiron.
Tonight, starting at 7 PM ET, the Class of 2014 will be giving their induction speeches and they will be on hand for the Hall of Fame Game, which kicks off the NFL exhibition season.
For many Michael Strahan is the headliner, even though he his entering on his second year. Strahan is a two time Super Bowl Champion with the New York Giants and holds the single season Sack record. He has become mainstream famous with his daytime hosting gig with Kelly Ripa and remains in the NFL spotlight as one of the panelists on Fox’s pre and post game show.
To us, the headliner is Derrick Brooks, who we had ranked at number one last year. Brooks was the star of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense that propelled them to a Super Bowl win in 2002. Brooks would make eleven Pro Bowls and was named the Defensive Player of the Year in 2002.
Many fans of the Buffalo Bills will likely be on hand as their former star Wide Receiver, Andre Reed got in after being a finalist the seven years previous. He completes the Bills trifecta of offence stars (Jim Kelly and Thurman Thomas) from their four straight AFC Championships in Canton.
Like Brooks, Walter Jones enters the Football Hall of Fame on the first ballot. The former Offensive Lineman spent his entire career with the Seattle Seahawks and was named to nine Pro Bowls.
Aeneas Williams, who was an eight time Pro Bowler, entered Canton on his third ballot. The Cornerback spent the majority of his career with the Cardinals, would lead the NFL in Interceptions in 1994.
Two players chosen by the Senior Nominee Selection Committee, Claude Humphrey and Ray Guy join these five stars.
Humphrey had 122 (unofficial) Quarterback Sacks and anchored the Atlanta Falcons defense for years. Guy was a Finalist seven times and many credited his previous omission to Canton as further evidence that the game of Football had little to no respect for Special Teams players. Guy redefined the position of Punting and is still an iconic figure for kickers coming up today.
We would like to once again extend our congratulations to the Football Hall of Fame Class of 2014 and we will definitely be watching the proceedings this evening.
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