HoF semifinalists to be announced today

The Pro Football Hall of Fame's list of semifinalists for the induction class of 2012 will be announced on NFL Network sometime after 4:00 this afternoon. They will narrow the list from 105 preliminary modern-era nominees to 25.

Former Rams on the preliminary list:
Jerome Bettis
Bud Carson
Stephen Davis (first time eligible)
Henry Ellard
Kevin Greene
Chuck Knox
Eddie Kotal (Rams scout from 1947 - 1961)
Clark Shaughnessy (head coach 1948  - 1949)
Dick Vermeil
Aeneas Williams

Bettis was a finalist last year. Greene and Williams were semifinalists, as was late Cardinals coach Don Coryell.

If all of last year's semifinalists qualify again, and the voters keep the unsavory candidacies of Paul Tagliabue, Eddie DeBartolo and Art Modell alive, there will be four semifinal openings. (Note I am uncertain when, or how, a candidate runs out of eligibility.) The key first-time eligibles for 2012 are Bill Cowher, Bill Parcells, Marty Schottenheimer, Tiki Barber, Keyshawn Johnson, Drew Bledsoe, Will Shields and Rod Smith.

Parcells and Shields should be locks to make the final 25, and are locks to be inducted into the Hall. I'd guess Parcells makes it on his first year of (re)eligibility. Shields deserves to, but might have to queue for a couple of years behind other offensive line candidates.

Greene should continue to be a semifinalist at the very least. Third all-time in sacks, and they're starting to induct guys behind him on that list like Richard Dent. And I cannot tell you why the hell Rickey Jackson should be in the Hall of Fame and Greene isn't.
 
Cowher's candidacy is clouded by rumors he'll be back coaching in the league next season. Schottenheimer's 200 wins are more than any eligible coach, but if the lack of Super Bowl rings keeps Chuck Knox out of the top 25 with 186 wins, and Dan Reeves with 190, I'm not feeling it for Marty. We all love Vermeil, but I don't know if 120 career wins will ever be enough to put him over the top.


I can't see putting Smith or Johnson in the top 25 if Ellard can't get there. Ellard easily has more career receiving yards than either, and has as many receptions as Johnson. It might be telling that the Hall of Fame website didn't even list Smith among the notable new eligibles. Boo to them for that, but no new WRs this year unless it's Ellard.

Bledsoe's 8th all-time in career passing yards and is an interesting case for those of us expecting Kurt Warner to walk in in a couple of years with the same number of Pro Bowls (4) and 12,000 fewer career yards. And heck, yes, Warner is walking right into the Hall in a couple of years. Bledsoe's .500 career record (.655 for Warner) makes him look a lot more like Jim Hart, though, and Jim isn't going to make the Hall. Sorry, but no.

Barber and Eddie George have very similar career statistics, and George couldn't crack the top 25 last year. Plus Barber is a gigantic jerk. So no.

I threw support to Roger Craig earlier, but I didn't have to, he was a semifinalist last year. Two former semifinalists I'd like to see get back in: Redskins tackle Joe Jacoby and special teamer Steve Tasker of the Bills, a 7-time Pro Bowler.

If I really had my druthers, I'd rip out the St. Louis-hating, not particularly distinctive or innovative commissioner Tagliabue, federal criminal and serial salary cap-violator DeBartolo, and Modell for the mortal sin of moving the Browns out of Cleveland. I'd replace them with Henry Ellard, Sam Mills and Gil Brandt.


 -$-