HOF Hope for Herschel?

This weekend the NFL Network aired a 30 minute show naming the 2015 finalists for the pro football hall of fame. The show was poorly named – something about the gold jacket. I stumbled across it by mistake. Not sure how many times it had been rerun – I think these finalists were named back in November. The baseball HOF inductees were profiled on ESPN – beforehand the MLB Network had broadcast an hour long roundtable discussion on who should be voted in. Junior Seau should get in to appease all the concussion advocates.

The finalists: Morten Andersen (K, above), Tim Brown (WR), Don Coryell (HC), Tony Dungy (HC), Kevin Greene (DE), Charles Haley (DE), Marvin Harrison (WR), Jimmy Johnson (HC), John Lynch (SS), Orlando Pace (OT), Bill Polian (GM), Junior Seau (LB), Will Shields (OG), Mick Tinglehoff (C), Kurt Warner (QB), and Ron Wolf (GM). Also running backs Jerome Bettis and Terrell Davis, whose stats I will compare with potential HOF RBs Watters and Walker:

Jerome Bettis – 15111 yd 94 TD in 13 yr (1162 per year)

Terrell Davis – 8887 yds 65 TDs in 7 yr (1270 per year)

Rickey Watters – 14891 yd 91 TD in 10 yr (1489 per year)

Herschel Walker – 18168 yd 84 TD in 12 yr (1514 per year) not including his monster USFL stats

After the gold jacket show the NFL Network reran an old NFL Films show counting down the Top Ten Players Not in the Hall of Fame. Honorable mentions included Drew Pearson, Clifford Branch, Kevin Greene, Randy Gradishar, Jim Otto, Otis Taylor, Tommy Nobis, and others – but not Hershel Walker, who retired ranked third on the all-time combined yardage list. Herschel also had more receiving yards than any other running back in history. His career NFL stats were comparable to many other HOF RB’s. The ten:

10. Ken Anderson: Great stats. Lost but never won a Super Bowl.

9. Steve Tasker: should a mere special teams player be elected to the Hall? Special teams is a third of the game.

8. Alex Karras: Great or lousy? Suspended for gambling but so was the golden boy Hornung.

7. Ricky Watters: great stats but didn’t give his all, and said so.

6. Ken Stabler: are Raiders didn’t shut out of the Hall?

5. Tim Brown: great stats catching passes from 18 different QB’s. Never on a big winner.

4. Jim Marshall: an ironman run over in four Super Bowl losses. Often mentioned is his long wrong way fumble return against the 49ers.

3. Jerome Bettis: a cog in the Steeler machine?

2. Charles Haley: if he was so good why did the 49ers trade him?

1. Jerry Kramer: what holds him back is that so many Packers have already been enshrined.

Another sports website listed the top nine not in the hall - and listed nine of the ten in the NFL Network list. I logged on and voiced my displeasure, and put in a good word for Herschel (above).

NOTE: There is a NFL.com article listing five players who should be in the HOF: tackle Tony Boselli, safety Tim McDonald, special-teamer Steve Tasker, RB Ricky Watters -  and Herschel. Perhaps there is hope after all.