What the 2015 Hall of Fame class should be

On Saturday, the National Football League will announce the Hall of Fame inductees for the class of 2015. Currently, there are 15 finalists waiting to hear their fates, with a maximum of five being allowed into Canton. The rest will have to wait patiently, another year drifting by.

The Hall of Fame allows five members in from the modern-era pool, along with one senior committee candidate. There is also the contributor category, with general managers Bill Polian and Ron Wolf up for induction. This year, former Minnesota Vikings center Mick Tingelhoff appears to be getting the call from the senior voting.

Below are the 15 modern-era finalists:

Morten Andersen, K (1982-2007)
Jerome Bettis, RB (1993-2005)
Tim Brown, WR (1988-2004)
Don Coryell, Coach (1973-86)
Terrell Davis, RB (1995-2001)
Tony Dungy, Coach (1996-2008)
Kevin Greene, LB (1985-99)
Charles Haley, DE (1986-99)
Marvin Harrison, WR (1996-2008)
Jimmy Johnson, Coach (1989-1993; 96-99)
John Lynch, S (1993-2007)
Orlando Pace, LT (1997-2009)
Junior Seau, LB (1990-2009)
Will Shields, RG (1993-2006)
Kurt Warner, QB (1998-2009)

There are a few names on the list that can be eliminated right away. Andersen was a terrific kicker and the NFL’s all-time leading scorer. However, he is not going to get enough votes (the Hall of Fame requires that a player receive at least 80 percent of the vote. There are 46 voters.). Coryell was a coach who changed the game with his passing offense, but he never reached a Super Bowl. He’s going to fall short. Johnson will also struggle, becoming a finalist for the first time in his 11 years of eligibility.

For my money, Junior Seau is the easiest pick. Seau was a tremendous linebacker, mostly playing his career with the San Diego Chargers. Seau made 12 Pro Bowls and was named First-Team All-Pro eight times. He’s unquestionably deserving a bust in Canton.

After Seau, a pair of men from the Greatest Show on Turf should get the call. Pace was one of the dominant left tackles of his time, along with Jonathan Ogden and Walter Jones. Both of them are already in the Hall of Fame, and Pace should follow. Warner had a pedestrian middle of his career, but the beginning and end was a fairytale story. Warner went to three Super Bowls, won with the St. Louis Rams in 1999, and earned MVP honors twice. Warner threw for over 32,000 yards and 208 touchdowns in his NFL career.

For the last two spots, I would select Davis and Shields. Davis was a virtuoso in cleats at the running back position, and is only debatable for the Hall because of a terrible knee injury that cut his career short. Davis deserves to be immortalized. He was a truly great player who won two Super Bowls with the Denver Broncos. Shields, along with Hall of Famer Larry Allen, was the best guard of his generation. Largely toiling in anonymity with the Kansas City Chiefs, Shields made 12 consecutive Pro Bowls, eight All-Pro teams, was named the 2003 Walter Payton Man of the Year, and is a member of the 2000’s All-Decade Team. What else could he have done?

In the future, Harrison, Lynch, Haley and Brown should all get in, along with perhaps Greene. It’s a process. For some, a long and stressful one.

About Matt Verderame

Matt Verderame, 26, is a New Yorker who went to school at the frozen tundra of SUNY Oswego. After graduating, Verderame has worked for Gannett and SB Nation among other ventures.

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