The official announcement of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2023:
Joe Thomas, OT
Darelle Revis, CB
Demarcus Ware, DE/OLB
Ken Riley, CB
Joe Klecko, DL
Chuck Howley, LB
Ronde Barber, DB
Don Coryell, Coach
Zach Thomas, LB
Let us know what you think in the comments below…
I spent some time looking back at the history of Zoneblitz the last couple of days, partly just out of curiosity and partly because I haven’t looked at the details in quite some time. Looking back at our domain registrar, it shows our ownership date for Zoneblitz.com as 5/30/2007 — but I know we’ve owned the domain since longer than that, as I remember the very first iteration of the site (a colossal failure) back in probably 2001 or so.
The oldest post in this iteration of Zoneblitz dates back to February 29th, 2008, a leap year post celebrating the start of the new (football) year — a post that, according to our Google Analytics (launched in October of 2008) likely just got it’s first visit in the last 14 years today. We stumbled into writing about the Hall of Fame later in 2008 as well. I thought I had written a much more scathing post about Randall McDaniel not making it, but apparently it was just our first ever predictions post. And while we didn’t think anything of it, come January and the announcement of who made the cut, we saw our first spike in traffic — 5,400 total pageviews, almost 3,600 on that single post. In August, with the actual induction, it spiked again. And it began an annual tradition. (more…)
When the NFL schedule maker set out to make the 2022 schedule, clearly they had the same thought that many fans had–the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos looked like two teams that just needed a little help–ideally in the form of quarterback upgrades–to take the next step in challenging for an AFC title. The Broncos only finished 7-10 last year, but played in arguably already the most difficult division in the league–and had a stingy defense that only allowed 322 points against. The Colts finished 9-8 and just missed the playoffs after choking against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 17–a loss (and end of season slide) that many attributed directly to Carson Wentz.
Enter Russell Wilson and Matt Ryan–a matchup that led to the NFL making the week 5 matchup between the Colts & Broncos the prime time, Thursday night matchup. And led to many social media posts like this one, seen on Facebook actually this morning–after the…lackluster performance by both teams:
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So we’re just a few days removed from Matthew Stafford leading riding Cooper Kupp’s coattails in the Lions Rams’ Super Bowl victory, and as with all first-time QB Super Bowl winners, the Hall of Fame questions have started.
Unlike two years ago, when I think it was mostly parody asking about Patrick Mahomes (who may well be on his way, but was only in his second full year as a starter), Stafford actually has a resume built up that can be analyzed:
Of course, he also has a few other career highlights:
Richard Sherman weighed in on Twitter:
“I’m gonna talk about it on the podcast but the HOF bar is incredibly low now. Like a participation trophy. No all decade team. No All pro. No MVP. 1 Pro bowl. Not even MVP of the SB. Never considered the best in any year he played. At least M Ryan has an MVP.”
“There is no measuring stick that makes Stafford a Hall of Famer other than playing in the most passer happy decade in NFL history. Inflated numbers make ever QB that starts 10+ years a ‘hof.’”
So did Michael Robinson, for what it’s worth:
“Yes he’s a gold jacket, ABSOLUTELY. The ultimate team goal, to win a Lombardi, Matthew Stafford actually has, and he was a huge part of winning this Super Bowl.”
And like many other players and coaches of late, his wife chimed in on it:
“And now … the debate on the HOF? We shouldn’t be talking about the HOF because he isn’t done playing the game yet. If you don’t believe he is a HOFer … I can’t wait for him to prove you wrong in his remaining years … just like he did IN ONE YEAR to everyone who said all the things listed above. So let’s table this talk until he actually retires? Thank you.”
The question even came up in the comments here on Zoneblitz already.
So what say you, the Zoneblitz faithful? Leave your thoughts in the comments below…
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With the announcement of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2022 fast approaching on NFL Honors Show, Thursday February 10th, its time to lock in your predictions. For a reminder here is the list of modern candidate finalists that the selection committee voted on during their 7 hour virtual meeting on January 18th:
DE Jared Allen
OT Willie Anderson
DB Ronde Barber
OT Tony Boselli
S LeRoy Butler
PR/KR Devin Hester
WR Torry Holt
WR Andre Johnson
LB Sam Mills
DT Richard Seymour
LB Zack Thomas
LB DeMarcus Ware
WR Reggie Wayne
LB Patrick Willis
DT Bryant Young
We should also note that the committee has also already voted on the separate cases for the senior finalist WR Cliff Branch, coach Dick Vermeil and contributor Art McNally-as per usual we can assume all were elected. So for our predictions we will just consider the aforementioned 15 modern candidates. To save time and effort a few of us here at ZoneBlitz.com will make our predictions below without lengthy justifications. For more detailed discussion and debate on these candidates review our longer thread of posts on the Deciding the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2022 topic. Please feel free to comment on ours or make your own, but be sure to do so before the official announcement Thursday February 10th, 9-11pm EST on the NFL Honors Show. Anyone who correctly predicts all five can declare themselves “The Greatest” for the next year when posting here on ZoneBlitz.com.
Paul: Boselli, Butler, Seymour, Thomas, Ware – I am going with four final 10 left over from the 2021 election, in fact both Boselli and Seymour have been in final ten multiple times indicating they have support of the voters and appear primed for election this year. Butler is another candidate with repeated appearances in the final 15 and as voters have addressed the safety position in recent years, he is the next one up. That leaves my prediction of the one and only 2022 first ballot candidate to be elected, Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos LB DeMarcus Ware. Although his first ballot case may not be as strong as others in recent elections, it does compare favorably to Jason Taylor who was first ballot in class of 2017. Some voters have recently become more vocal and critical about the number of first ballot candidates elected, but 2012 is last class without one, so in my view Ware will be that guy this class. It’s really hard to get all five slots predicted correctly as 49 voters usually results in at least one surprise. I am not taking this into consideration with my predictions, but the one of the WRs Holt or Wayne could slip in replacing either Thomas or Ware, if voters collectively decide to address the rapid growing logjam at WR position.
Tony: Boselli, Holt, Seymour, Ware, Wayne – I agree that four of the final 10 from last year make it, but I’ll go off the beaten path and put two WR in. I’d like to see Jared Allen make it, but I think Ware gets the slight edge there and makes it first ballot — although in many years, I think he would be waiting for a season or two as well.
Andy: I think this is going to be the weakest class enshrined in years. I think a lot of these guys are being considered as much because they played for a long time as that they were actually elite players. And I think there are enough guys at similar positions (Johnson, Wayne, Holt vs Willis, Mills, Ware, Thomas vs Anderson, Boselli, etc.) where there is a good chance guys cancel each other out and this ends up being the first class in years to not max out the available HOF spots. I think each of the non-modern era candidates get in. Branch, Vermeil and McNally get in. But this group of finalists stymies me. I like a lot of them. I don’t really love almost any of them. And I find it interesting that one of the guys Paul and Tony both like — Richard Seymour — is on my no list. At three AP First Team All Pro lists, I think he waits. I agree with them on Ware and Boselli. I’m going Holt over Wayne. I think both eventually get in, though I’m not sure either should be a lock. Both had one AP First Team award. One. There were plenty of Pro Bowls amongst them, but the Pro Bowl is such a bad a joke now that people are suggesting as an alternative the worst team in the AFC play the worst team in the NFC for the top pick in the draft. Anyway … I think Zach Thomas is a great story and a solid candidate. And I’m struggling to find a fifth that I am really blown away with. Forced, I’ll go Jared Allen, but he’s not a perfect candidate either.
Lock in your predictions in the comments below.
A couple weeks back, ProFootballReference.com, the most comprehensive database of football stats online, announced that they were adding unofficial sack totals to player stats from 1960 to 1981, after two researchers compiled the data utilizing box scores, game stories and film.
One of the researchers, Jack Turney, was quoted in this 2006 story about Michael Strahan’s career sack total vs Lawrence Taylor, who’s rookie season of 1981 isn’t counted amongst the official sack totals. Even in 2006, Turney had data back to 1970 for stats.
While no mention is made of the bogus Strahan single season sack record—bogus both because of the pathetic “sack” that set the record, and because the unofficial stats show that the record was actually 23 sacks, set by Al Baker in his 1978 rookie season—the article did mention the opinion that:
“Turney’s research undoubtedly helped Youngblood reach the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001, 17 years after he left the game.”
Interesting, because when I first heard about the unofficial stats being published, on a local sports radio show, my thoughts (and the hosts, I believe) also immediately thought of another Hall of Fame candidacy—that of Minnesota Vikings Purple People Eater Jim Marshall.
Marshall is largely known for two things from his career—his Iron Man streak of 282 games played (and 270 consecutive starts), and famously scoring a safety for the San Francisco 49ers, running the wrong direction after picking up a fumble in a 1964 matchup. Interestingly, he is less known for holding the NFL record for most career fumble recoveries in a career, with 30—a stat that I have to admit forgetting about myself.
Perhaps less known about Marshall, though, is that he too was a prolific sacker of the quarterback—his Wikipedia page already credited him with 127 sacks unofficially, and the data from ProFootballReference.com puts him at 130.5 sacks—good for 22nd all-time (tied with Coy Bacon).
Ahead of Marshall on the unofficial list, only Julius Peppers (159.5), Terrell Suggs (139), DeMarcus Ware (138.5), Jared Allen (136), John Abraham (133.5), Leslie O’Neal (132.5), and Baker (131) are not in the Hall of Fame (along with Bacon). Peppers, Suggs, Ware and Allen seem likely to get in the Hall of Fame, while I have heard arguments made for Abraham and O’Neal to eventually make it too.
Many will argue that Marshall got that many sacks because of how long he played (18 seasons in the NFL), and because many of those seasons were played with Alan Page (148.5 sacks unofficially) and Carle Eller (133.5 sacks unofficially), both members of the Hall. And those people aren’t wrong—but he still got the sacks.
And that Iron Man streak—the current active leader for consecutive starts, Ndamukong Suh, would need to start every game for more than the next seven seasons to reach that mark, even with 17 game seasons –is frankly amazing. Especially playing in the trenches, in an era with less than stellar medical capabilities.
So will this new data from ProFootballReference.com make much difference in Marshall’s claim to a spot in Canton? Based on the previous unofficial count of 127 sacks, it only actually moved him up one spot—from 24th overall, behind Hall of Famer Claude Humphrey (130 sacks) and ahead of Hall of Famer Derrick Thomas (126.5). One Vikings blog points out that his comparatively paltry four seasons of 10+ sacks, 12 seasons of less than seven sacks, and career average of 6.5 sacks per year don’t compare favorably to current Viking Hall of Famers Carl Eller, Alan Page, Chris Doleman and John Randle–nor likely Hall of Famer Allen, or even not likely Hall of Famer Everson Griffen.
So maybe the data won’t help—even though sacks aren’t the only thing for defensive linemen (especially since they didn’t officially exist until 1981), and the abundance of 70’s Vikings already in the Hall may also continue to work against him.
But as all true homer fans will do, I will continue to bang the drum (or blow the Gjallarhorn) for Marshall until he gets that call.
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