Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2011 Announced
The selections are in. Your class of 2011 for the Pro Football Hall of Fame consists of Marshall Faulk, Deion Sanders, Richard Dent, Ed Sabol, and Shannon Sharpe, along with senior candidates Chris Hanburger and Les Richter.
As a result, no offensive linemen were selected, even though there were two slam dunk choices–Willie Roaf and Dermontti Dawson. For the second year in a row, Andre Reed made the cut to the final ten, but was not selected, while Cris Carter and Tim Brown did not even make the final ten again. Quite frankly, I give up trying to understand what the committee looks at. Obviously, politics plays a key role behind closed doors.
I have no problem with Richard Dent in the Hall in the abstract. I think he was a great player from when I was a kid. I do question, for the second year in a row, taking a borderline candidate who doesn’t rank in the top 75% of HOF’ers at his position over guys who are clear cut Hall of Famers and have now been passed over multiple times. Dermontti Dawson is atop that list, along with Carter and Brown, and you can now add Willie Roaf. Jason Whitlock will not be happy.
[photo via Getty]
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February 5th, 2011 at 7:42 PM
Hate it, hate it, hate it. Roaf for some reason I didn’t think was going in anyways, even being a ‘slam dunk’ like you said.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:43 PM
Real happy to see Ed Sabol get in. IMO he was a first ballot guy, NFL films turned great players and great games into legends.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:44 PM
Fucking joke that Roaf isn’t in. Carter as well.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:45 PM
Happy for the Colonel. It’s about time he got in. Also happy for Sabol.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:46 PM
How the fuck are Carter, Reed, Roaf, Martin, and Brown not 1st ballot HOFers?
/Looks at rest of the list.
//They’ll get in. Stacked year this year. Shit happens. It’ll work out for them.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:47 PM
I didn’t mean 1st ballot. Just not in on any voting card.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:47 PM
Glad that Richard Dent’s 2010 season finally put him over the top
February 5th, 2011 at 7:47 PM
Maggie Gyllenhall makes the Dark Knight smell bad.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:50 PM
Read on IMDB that Robin Williams is rumored to play Dr. Hugo Strange in the new movie. Really want this to happen.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:50 PM
Cris Carter got shafted. Andre Reed had a HOF QB throwing to him while for so many years CC was THE offense in Minnesota and never had a HOF throw it to him, unless you call the over the hill Moon one.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:51 PM
Ralph Fiennes may play the Bond villian in James Bond 23!
February 5th, 2011 at 7:51 PM
This is stupid. The fact that there is a bullshit meeting where a pitch is made to get someone is just poisons the whole process.
Lobbying pollutes every facet of American life ad now it fucks up a hall of fame.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:53 PM
This is blandly predictable and yet delightful.
February 5th, 2011 at 7:53 PM
It is because Minnesota has the old and senile Sid Hartman, who is closer to 100 yrs old than 60, presenting them and is such an old-school ass I am sure he pisses off the voting panel.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:21 PM
Sterling was a better player than his brother. Shannon was voted in b/c it was TE. Sterling, in his short shelf life, was one of the best at his position during that time. Damn concussions. You may want to count Al Toon & John Taylor too. This coming from a Rice fan.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:23 PM
Sterling was undone by a neck injury, don’t remember there being a concussion problem…agreed about him being one of the best, would have ended up in Canton for sure had he not gotten hurt
February 5th, 2011 at 8:35 PM
Tim Brown, Chris Carter, Roaf, Dawson all should be in. is there a class member limit or something? I think the “we cant have too man of one position” get in. you’re punishing players for being born at the wrong time. just because brown and carter played at the same time as irvin and rice doesnt mean they should have to wait any longer. they have the numbers put them in.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:35 PM
It is because Minnesota has the old a senile Sid Hartman, who is closer to old than 60, presenting them and is s old-school ass I am sure he pisses of voting panel.
He wasn’t there. Some guy from the same paper subbed for him
Surprised either Reed or Carter didn’t get in. Thought one would.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:45 PM
next year should get some of these guys in. this site has these names as up for the first time: Tiki Barber, Bill Cowher, Bill Parcells, Will Shields, Rod Smith
Not exactly a great first time class.
http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/38530877/ns/sports-nfl/
If anyone knows any other people who will be eligible for the first time I’d be interested to see them, it’s kind of hard to find info.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:50 PM
Andre Reed? Can’t wait till Herman Moore makes it…
February 5th, 2011 at 8:51 PM
They need to make a selection spot for non playing NFL people so to not take a spot away from someone who did. I am happy Ed Sabol made it in and is deserving but his selection should not take away from a player. Keep the 5 slots for players then add 1 or 2 for owners, coaches, general managers, writers, etc. This would allow the committee to select 5 playing members and 1-2 non playing members.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:52 PM
Just to add to that, a non playing member does not have to be added just for the sake of adding to the HOF.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:55 PM
Like I said the other day, I do not understand why Sabol is being voted in the same way that players are. He should be voted in as a special separate media inductee so that he does not take away from a player being voted in as well. I’m not saying be does not belong in the hall of fame, just that someone who never played should not take away a spot from one who did or a coach.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:56 PM
D’oh!
February 5th, 2011 at 8:57 PM
Jdeeser: agree & said the same yesterday. The Seniors committee is a joke. Les Richter I never heard of, & Chris Hanberger was nothing special, imo. Those guts have a much easier path to get in. They should have, as you said, a contributors section, for owners, announcers, guys like Sabol.
February 5th, 2011 at 8:57 PM
Willie Roaf, Dermontti Dawson. I guess these are the names that are going to be used to personify the narrative to
February 5th, 2011 at 8:59 PM
……cry about the HOF process. Faulk, Prime, Sharpe, and Dent don’t take a backseat to either one of them, and Charles Haley should have gotten in before either of them.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:03 PM
I take it you never saw Batman Begins, because if you saw it you would know that she is an infinite improvement from Katie Holmes who couldnt act her way out of a paper bag.
Everyone is now saying that Joseph Gordon-Levitt is about to sign on for the part. Robin WIlliams would be great because people forget that he can be really creepy like in Insomnia.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:06 PM
Do voters maybe not vote for Carter because he played with Moss and think his stats were a bit inflated because so much of the defenses he faced focused on Moss?
February 5th, 2011 at 9:08 PM
I have heard voters talk about how that is the exact thinking that a lot of them have.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:10 PM
Kemba! And his teammates!
February 5th, 2011 at 9:15 PM
that is retarded
February 5th, 2011 at 9:16 PM
what if barry sanders, emmit smiff,walter payton,jim brown,faulk, dickerson all retired at the exact same time? who gets denied?
February 5th, 2011 at 9:21 PM
No, they should be used for the narrative about how the Pro Football HOF has a disproportionally low number of offensive lineman enshrined…not enough “zip” apparently
February 5th, 2011 at 9:23 PM
Sanders. Didn’t win anything
February 5th, 2011 at 9:23 PM
since he is unintelligible on NFL Today, will they run subtitles for Dumb Donald’s induction speech?
February 5th, 2011 at 9:23 PM
And my prior post was jokey. HOF’s are stupid.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:25 PM
neither did dickerson
February 5th, 2011 at 9:29 PM
my bad, I thought they were competing against the players who were selected for a slot in the Hall. I just read in the bleacher report that there have been more offensive linemen inducted in the modern era than from any other position, so it would be interesting to see where the idea of the position being underrepresented comes from. Linemen have been represented.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:31 PM
The Seniors committee is a joke. Les Richter I never heard of, & Chris Hanberger was nothing special, imo. Those guts have a much easier path to get in.
but they will always have the seniors committee stink on them. don’t think it isn;t noticed. HOF by SC is not the same as HOF before SC
February 5th, 2011 at 9:32 PM
great stuff from MAD TV
February 5th, 2011 at 9:34 PM
mrejr – Who won the fight on Facebook. The video wouldn’t play on my CPU. I just ordered the PPV at home. Excited.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:34 PM
Do voters maybe not vote for Carter because he played with Moss and think his stats were a bit inflated because so much of the defenses he faced focused on Moss?
i thought cc had some bad background, drugs, crime or something
February 5th, 2011 at 9:35 PM
deion in his prime
February 5th, 2011 at 9:35 PM
johnson won
February 5th, 2011 at 9:37 PM
KO, Sub or Decision?
I love this card. Only fight I’m not really psyched about is Franklin-Griffin. Now saying it’ll be a crap fight, just kinda sick of those two already. It should be a war in the last 3 fights for sure.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:39 PM
Not saying*
February 5th, 2011 at 9:41 PM
Unanimous decision
February 5th, 2011 at 9:43 PM
I think Ace beats griffin..Ace is underrated
February 5th, 2011 at 9:46 PM
Agree. Rich by decision, too. Don’t think it’ll be a KO fight.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:59 PM
Darmok and Jelad. At Tenagra.
February 5th, 2011 at 9:59 PM
I just read in the bleacher report that there have been more offensive linemen inducted in the modern era than from any other position, so it would be interesting to see where the idea of the position being underrepresented comes from. Linemen have been represented.
I wouldn’t use that site to wipe my ass or wrap fish. It’s the worst site ever created. OUR site is journalism at its finest, based on dongs/pageview
/TBL
February 5th, 2011 at 10:08 PM
If you’re math illiterate then you might be able to understand that with FIVE (that would be one for each finger and your thumb on your hand) offensive linemen on each play, on each team, every game, the fact that there are only 13 more of them inducted then QB’s, and only 7 more then running backs, yes they might be fucking under represented you tool.
February 5th, 2011 at 10:14 PM
With these two guys getting in this year and Floyd Little last year (whom I don’t think was a senior nominee, but anyway), it can’t be long before Canton opens its doors to the likes of Lawrence McCutcheon and Chuck Foreman.
/not a compliment
February 5th, 2011 at 10:18 PM
Steve Atwater anyone?
/waiting for Okoye link
February 5th, 2011 at 10:25 PM
Shortly after, Carter had a falling out with coach Buddy Ryan and was a surprise cut following the pre-season. Carter later admitted that Ryan released him because of alcohol and drug abuse, large amounts of ecstasy and marijuana being his drugs of choice, and credits his former coach with helping him turn his life around as a result
February 5th, 2011 at 10:27 PM
I’ll support him if you support Sam Mills.
/HOF voter’d
February 5th, 2011 at 10:30 PM
Back in 1990 or so, BTW.
February 5th, 2011 at 11:13 PM
So, because there are more offensive linemen on the field than any other position, in your world this means there should be more offensive linemen in the Hall by a wider margin than for any other position? Makes sense. I guess in the same way that there should be the same number of kickers as QB’s in the Hall.
/oh boy
February 5th, 2011 at 11:27 PM
i wonder if OL are judged by theior position, not as an OL. so RGs only judged against RGs, and so on….
in that way, there are not so many more OLs than other positions, because they are not viewed as a group but as each position.
i know some will understand what i just typed
/new stories being put up on my website tonight. i’ll be sure to designate them as new
//i know, you can finally rest easy
February 5th, 2011 at 11:30 PM
“Offensive lineman” is not a position. I’d say it’s pretty reasonable to say there should be roughly as many OTs in the HOF as running backs, then you throw in some guards and centers who, probably rightly, aren’t as well respected as tackles. So, yes, offensive line positions are underrepresented.
Comparing offensive linemen to kickers is just stupid.
February 5th, 2011 at 11:35 PM
Really cool that Sabol got in. Blown away that somehow Willie Roaf was unworthy.
February 5th, 2011 at 11:40 PM
i think unworthy is the wrong word, dork, until i hear someone, anyone say such a thing about him
February 5th, 2011 at 11:41 PM
Man, I hope someone got a screengrab/GIF of Donovan McNabb HAMMERED at the fight. Dude was swaying in his seat.
February 5th, 2011 at 11:45 PM
Well, enough of the voters considered him unworthy for the 2011 vote, anyway. These people make no sense.
Ata boy.
February 5th, 2011 at 11:47 PM
I’m not the person making the assertion that offensive linemen are underrepresented. I know I hear the argument normally when there is an offensive skill player that someone doesn’t like who is selected to the Hall. I think the whole assertion that linemen are underrepresented is stupid. It would be cool if someone who is making the argument would provide a list of examples. If linemen aren’t being acknowledged, it would be easy to give a list of 10-20 off the top, especially since there are 5 spots on the line.
February 5th, 2011 at 11:48 PM
but he used his hands and everything!
February 6th, 2011 at 12:27 AM
Richard Dent had at least 10,000 interceptions for me in Tecmo Bowl. Well deserved.
/Still play NES instead of looking for tail
//Don’t try to fix me
February 6th, 2011 at 12:28 AM
Anderson Silva is insane
February 6th, 2011 at 12:51 AM
that much anticipated GSP-Silva fight has a real good chance of being a rout. I just don’t see how GSP can overcome the size and height advantage that silva has over him. I think Silva can make GSP look like a fool.
Overall it was sister kisser of a card. I expected so much more. Only Silva and Jones fight were good.
February 6th, 2011 at 8:20 AM
The seniors’ committee is necessary because so many of the voting sports writers are as ignorant of most players and of football in general as the clowns who are denigrating Hanberger on this forum. The recently deceased Dandy Don Meredith said that he feared Hanberger more than any player, and he was hit harder by Hanberger than any player. Hanberger made 9 Pro Bowls when the voting was done by coaches. He was voted onto Pro Bowl squads year after year ahead of other players who have been in the Hall of Fame for years. His contemporary players and coaches knew he was the best. Now his HOF induction will be way late, but very well deserved.
February 6th, 2011 at 8:37 AM
I don’t think that was the case. I think it was a case where certain people didn’t think he was “first ballot” worthy.
/whatever that means
//stupid argument
February 6th, 2011 at 9:11 AM
Curtis Martin not in on 1st ballot? What a joke this is.
February 6th, 2011 at 9:25 AM
Martin isn’t on TV every week talking about how great he is.
/my facebook friend’s theory
//most of the people who got in use the bully pulpit every week
///Sharpe’d, Deion’d, Faulk’d
February 6th, 2011 at 10:04 AM
juts noticed today that the two players on the huge screen on the facade of cowboys stadium are rodgers andd…..polamalu. roethlisberger has won two SBs in the glamor position, and is not considered the face of the franchise on the sport’s spotlight day
/well, ben is fugly
February 6th, 2011 at 10:10 AM
/well, ben is fugly and a two time attempted/completed rapist, which is bad for the image conscious NFL
//allegedly
February 6th, 2011 at 10:12 AM
he looks like a damn caveman. Last time his beard was like that, he had a shitty superbowl. Heres to another hopefully
February 6th, 2011 at 10:20 AM
and jimi hendrix once said billy gibbons was the greatest guitar player ever. what’s the moral this story? never trust a drunk.
February 6th, 2011 at 10:32 AM
spence, don’t know if i caught up with you because of moderation/name change, but matt roth was terrifying in HS wrestling.e would stalk the mat before the match like a crazed bull, stomping and staring. most guys were beat pre-whistle
February 6th, 2011 at 10:33 AM
and, gonna lay off the o/u today. was all set for the over, but i’m just gonna put all my bones on the steelers plus whatevr pts
February 6th, 2011 at 11:03 AM
This Cheesehead segment on Countdown demeans us all in Wisconsin
February 6th, 2011 at 11:28 AM
vezina…yea dude, i hear he’s absolutely batshit. browns players give him a wide berth.
February 6th, 2011 at 4:00 PM
Maybe a good lesson is never to trust an individual who is so completely uneducated that he does not know what words to capitalize.