2013 Pro Football Hall of Fame Inductees

Congratulations to the 2013 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees.  Congratulations Warren Sapp, Bill Parcells, Jonathan Ogden, Dave Robinson, Larry Allen, Curley Culp, and Cris Carter!!  It is the most prestigious honor a football player or coach can receive.  This years ballot was certainly loaded with worthy candidates, but unfortunately only a certain number of players can make it in each year.  Which begs the question, why in the world are there minimums and maximums for the number of players that can be inducted into the Hall of Fame every year?  I personally don’t understand this concept.  The Pro Football Hall of Fame is supposed to be the measure of a players or coaches career and whether they deserve to be enshrined along side other legends of the game.  Here are a few quick excerpts I grabbed from the Pro Football Hall of Fame website that should shed some light on the subject:

“The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 46-person Selection Committee is charged with the vital task of continuing to be sure that new enshrinees are the finest the game has produced.”  That is the first line from the Pro Football Hall of Fame website under the Selection Process Tab.  My intention is not to disrespect the Hall of Fame, but only to educate.  See guys, logic would dictate that the Hall of Fame should only allow in the best of the best.  This means that setting minimums and forcing inductees into the Hall of Fame makes no sense whatsoever.  Here’s another quick excerpt from their website: “There is no set number for any class of enshrinees but, the Committee’s current ground rules do stipulate that between four and seven new members will be selected each year.”  If you set a minimum and a maximum on the amount of inductees you will or can have for each year, you are doing a disservice to the Hall of Fame.  If you have a “weaker” list of players to select from on a given year, but you are forced to induct at least 4 players, you are watering down the contents of the Hall and therefore not sending only the best of the best to the promised land.  On the flip side, if you have a year like 2013 where you have 8 worthy candidates, then you are forcing someone to wait at least an extra year to enter the sacred Hall of Fame.  For example, this year Michael Strahan deserved to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, however he was the 8th best player on the list this year, so he must wait.  Why??  You got me.  I have no freakin’ clue.  Hopefully someone can explain it to me.  It’s hard for me to understand how the NFL, a multi-billion dollar machine, can get something so simple so wrong.  I did notice that in 1973 and 1976 they only inducted three players, so  maybe there is hope for change after all.  Here’s a little side note that I have to mention:

Man do I feel bad for Dave Robinson.  For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, Dave Robinson was announced immediately following Jonathan Ogden on Sunday prior to the big game.  Whoever decided the order that the inductees should be announced should be fired.  With a Pro-Ravens crowd on hand, you had to know that Jonathan Ogden was going to get a standing ovation.  Even Dave Robinson noticed it.  You could faintly hear him say, “Damn it’s bad after that.”  Why you wouldn’t put Ogden last is beyond me, but as you can see the Hall of Fame doesn’t seem to be getting anything right.

Congratulations class of 2013!!  Better luck next year Mr. Strahan.