He rarely gets the public attention he deserves, but the Pro Bowl voters haven't ignored the interior disruptor, who has earned eight Pro Bowl nods and a pair of first-team All-Pro votes. 1. Early in a player's career, I'm also comfortable using draft status as an estimate of talent until they establish themselves as pros, which will lead to some very inexperienced players making this list. Pictured: Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans (13). Marriott has since been ordered by a judge to release footage of Irvin and the woman's altercation and the name of the . Wilson hasn't missed a game as a pro, so as long as he plays another five or six seasons and continues to rank among the better quarterbacks in football, he should be fine. Evans and Godwin might end up hurting each other's chances by preventing the other from getting a 185-target season like the one Michael Thomas enjoyed in 2019. In the running (40% to 69%): DE Josh Allen. The Cowboys are blessed with two linemen bound for Canton. Future Hall of Fame wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, though, has a different team in mind for Rodgers. Marcedes Lewis has been in the NFL for a long time. As he turns 30 in September, Gilmore probably needs at least two more seasons in which he has a credible case as the best cornerback in football -- or a really long peak. He is right on the borderline between the "Work to do" and "In the running" tiers. Gore had the misfortune of playing for some bad San Francisco and Indianapolis teams, but his numbers are certainly impressive. Lattimore has two Pro Bowl appearances in his first three seasons; if you throw out early-career players like Lattimore, Jalen Ramsey and Marcus Peters, eight of the 11 corners to pull that off since the merger are either in the Hall of Fame or going there. If Brown has a Whitworth-esque autumn to his career, he has a shot. A score of 100 is around the average modern-era inductee. Evans is just one of four NFL players ever to have 1,000 yards receiving as a 21-year-old rookie. So this is really a list of 15. But history suggests that his on-field performance makes him a Hall of Fame lock. Of all the young receivers, Moss is the only one to accomplish more through the first five seasons of his career. In the running (40% to 69%): DE Danielle Hunter, S Harrison Smith. Even if Hopkins takes a step backward without Deshaun Watson, he's probably just a couple of Pro Bowls from getting in. In the running (40% to 69%): S Eddie Jackson. Jones now has five consecutive seasons with at least 10 sacks. The Saints have the best tackle combination in football, but Armstead went underappreciated before picking up steam over the past couple of years and Ramczyk raised his game in 2019. But playing on so many bad Eagles teams delayed his entry into the Hall of Fame. No offensive lineman is ever a lock when guys like Faneca still aren't enshrined, but Smith plays the most prominent position on the line for the most popular team in the league. Jordan's ascension from very good player to one of the best defensive ends in football over the past three years has helped drive his candidacy. Kamara was also Offensive Rookie of the Year, which helps his chances further. Try selecting a different location. In both cases, I'm looking mostly at the historical output for first overall picks. Jones is likely to top 13,000 receiving yards and earn his eighth Pro Bowl nod this season, which should be enough to seal things for the superstar wideout. Its rattlesnake season in Texas. In fact, a future Hall of Fame wide receiver recently revealed that Rodgers tried to recruit him over to the Packers. Itll be interesting to see if his postseason prowess carries him, as it arguably did Lynn Swann in his eventual election. Heres what those guys did in their first five seasons and where they rank among all receivers in the age-21-to-25 cohort. In the Super Bowl Era. Partner with Us Back. Bosa won Defensive Rookie of the Year, which hasn't been quite as big of a boon as you might think. 260 players who could win MVP Unfortunately, Houston fans have had to wait through the years to see their stars get inducted. Troy Aikman, John Elway and Roger Staubach won multiple Super Bowls. Pouncey fits that magic 8+2 formula I mentioned earlier with regard to Atkins, and at 31, he should still have a couple more Pro Bowls in him. Julio Jones (2011-17): 8,076, two-time All-Pro, will be a Hall-of-Famer Jerry Rice (1985-89): 7,370, Hall-of-Famer, greatest receiver of all time Randy Moss (1998-2003): 7,258, Hall-of-Famer Torry Holt (1999-2004): 7,147, most yards through five years in NFL history In the running (40% to 69%): S Jamal Adams. If you think this is too early for the 2019 seventh overall pick, think again. Charley Taylor<br>1964-1975, 1977 . Collins was a Defensive Player of the Year candidate in 2016 and has three Pro Bowls across his first five seasons. Things would be different if he had actually won the MVP award or been the quarterback who ran the Eagles through the playoffs in 2017. Making sense of Mahomes' deal The induction process, like so many things, is on hold. Elliott has already won two rushing titles across his first four seasons, and that might be enough on its own. On a weekly basis, Evans is a volatile player, but his year-over-year production has been incredibly consistent. He shared a receivers room with four Hall-of-Famers and caught balls from a pair of Hall-of-Fame quarterbacks in Peyton Manning and Kurt Warner while playing in eight post-season games . Sanders started 16 regular season games at cornerback and another eight at wide receiver - becoming the first two-way starter in the NFL since the Philadelphia Eagles Chuck Bednarik, who retired in 1962. While Witten, 38, is years removed from his peak, he's going to finish his career with 11 Pro Bowl appearances and two first-team All-Pro nods. Gurley was a first-team All-Pro in 2017 and 2018, but he wasn't able to clinch a rushing title and didn't look like his old self last season. Author: Nate Greer. Hekker's case is interesting. If you need something more, Fitzgerald's 2008 playoff run is probably the best postseason from any receiver in league history. Twelve of the 29 Hall-eligible players who have started their careers with three consecutive Pro Bowl nods have made it to Canton. While injuries have cost Watt 32 games over the past four seasons, his unprecedented four-season peak from 2012 to 2015 locked up things. In 1996, he decided to play football full-time. From 2000-2003, Randy Moss put up video game numbers: 376 receptions, 5,649 yards and 49 touchdowns. The former Panthers quarterback has two other Pro Bowl nods besides that 2015 season, although he hasn't received a nomination since. Lock (100%): WR Larry Fitzgerald. Everyone but Hill is either a lock or extremely likely to make it in. His peak is Hall of Fame-worthy -- he has two of the three best seasons in fantasy football history by a tight end -- but it lasted only four seasons. Donald clinched his gold jacket when he won his second Defensive Player of the Year award. He probably needs to keep that streak going for a couple more years or rack up another 15-sack campaign to move the needle to Likely. Tight ends have relatively short careers, which makes projecting their Hall chances exceedingly difficult. Moving to a higher-profile, more successful team will help Ramsey's chances of drawing national attention, although he wasn't close to Stephon Gilmore or Tre'Davious White a year ago. I would put Gronkowski's chance somewhere around 99%. Watt, with his three Defensive Player of the Year awards with the Texans, will for sure give Houston another Hall of Famer. Likely (60% to 99%): RB Frank Gore. Over that five-year span, Landry ranks third in the NFL in catches and seventh in receiving yards. Tickets go on sale on Wednesday, September 1st at: www.radiohalloffame.com. Naturally, now seems like a good time to look forward. Adams has two Pro Bowls and an All-Pro nod across his first three seasons, putting him in a group with safeties such as Kenny Easley, Steve Atwater, Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu. Only two full-time kickers Jan Stenerud and Morten Andersen are in the Hall of Fame, but it would be hard to see Vinatieri shut out given his accomplishments. Podcast: Stat superlatives Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. XFL Week 3 preview: Can AJ McCarron, Battlehawks continue their fourth-quarter heroics? How Antonio Brown is hurting his Hall of Fame future, and what the volatile wide receiver needs to do to fix it Brown's continued off-field distractions have cast doubt on when -- and if -- he . Work to do (10% to 39%): C Alex Mack, DT Grady Jarrett. You could also make the argument that Murray should be up a level after being taken with the No. Campbell, who turns 34 next month, is probably going to miss out, which is a shame given how good he has been. These NFL wide receivers do not count toward our list of 10 worthy Hall of Famers. He is a graduate of Southwest Texas State University and Bowie High School in Austin. Erica Farber. Peppers, who played for the Panthers (twice), Bears and Packers, ranks fourth on the NFLs all-time sack list with 159 and was also on the Halls All-Decade Team for the 2000s and 2010s. If you were asked to name off the top of your head the three best NFL receivers to enter the league at 21, you might say Moss, Larry Fitzgerald and DeAndre Hopkins. Green. From 2015 to 2019, his numbers are virtually identical to those of Eric Ebron. Pro Football Reference's Hall of Fame monitor ranks Edelman 110th among wide receivers, and that gives him credit for winning three Super Bowls. Partner with Us Back. On the latest episode of the Let's Go! 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We still have to see what happens with the former LSU star, but of the 24 quarterbacks drafted with the first overall pick since the merger, five are either Hall of Famers or extremely likely to be enshrined. Graham's case is interesting. Edelman has never made a Pro Bowl, but the only player with more receiving yards in the playoffs is Jerry Rice. He repeated that feat in 2019, but he'll need to have Campbell's longevity and continue at this level into his mid-30s to have a viable path to the Hall. Quarterbacks like Ken Anderson, Boomer Esiason and Steve McNair won league MVP without earning enshrinement. Judging safeties on interceptions is stupid, but we haven't evolved beyond that point. He has three first-team All-Pro nods and a Super Bowl MVP before turning 31. March 25, 2020 9:36 pm ET. After that, we have players who are Likely to get in, who I estimate have between a 70% and 99% chance of earning induction. Round 1: Kiper | McShay | NFL Nation Work to do (10% to 39%): LB Tremaine Edmunds. He was nearly a lock after making four Pro Bowls and three first-team All-Pro nods across his first five seasons, but injuries have cost Thomas 20 games over the subsequent four years. Gordon made it to two Pro Bowls during his five seasons with the Chargers, but injury concerns and fumble woes make it tough to see a Hall of Fame ceiling for the 2015 first-rounder. (Justin Simmons, who was one of the NFL's best safeties a year ago, is still waiting for his first Pro Bowl appearance.). Let's see whether we can get a sense of who those 50 are right now: Jump to a team: Work to do (10% to 39%): DE DeMarcus Lawrence, DT Gerald McCoy, LB Leighton Vander Esch. He should have a very strong case for election. In related news, the Cowboys also have a running back likely bound for the Hall. Grading the Jamal Adams trade He made only two Pro Bowls with the Cardinals, which was a farce. Work to do (10% to 39%): WR Keenan Allen, G Trai Turner, DE Melvin Ingram III, CB Chris Harris Jr. Turner has made five consecutive Pro Bowls, but interior linemen typically need multiple first-team All-Pro nods to draw significant Hall interest. Vander Esch's chances are stronger than his fellow linebacker because he was a first-round pick and made the Pro Bowl as a rookie, while Smith was a second-round pick and didn't make it until his third campaign. Kelce is difficult to judge because tight ends aren't well represented in the Hall. His time may come, but maybe not for a while. Center Rodney Hudson deserves more attention, but he has been stuck behind Maurkice Pouncey in the AFC and has only three Pro Bowls to show across his seven years as a starter with the Chiefs and Raiders. Players with two Pro Bowls and one first-team All-Pro spot across their first three seasons who are eligible for the Hall have made it just over 48% of the time. Thielen only emerged as a starter after turning 26, which means he would have to play into his late 30s to have a chance at racking up the cumulative stats modern wide receivers will need for enshrinement. Jarrett made his first Pro Bowl last season, but his disruptiveness hasn't yet led to a gaudy sack total, which is what you need to get in as a defensive lineman. DISCLAIMER: This site is 100% for entertainment purposes only and does not involve real money betting. Do you have a blog? Only Campbell is in the Hall of Fame. Work to do (10% to 39%): TE George Kittle, DE Nick Bosa. "Nuk" has been a first-team All-Pro in each of his past three seasons, which is the sort of run that earns skill-position players a trip to Canton on their own. Allen will have a tougher time (presumably) without Yannick Ngakoue or Calais Campbell around in 2020, but he's off to a great start. In the running (40% to 69%): CB Tre'Davious White. Work to do (10% to 39%): RB Derrick Henry, OT Taylor Lewan, DE Vic Beasley Jr., S Kevin Byard. The two first-time eligible players who stand out on next years ballot are defensive end Julius Peppers and tight end Antonio Gates. Dan Orlovsky denounces the NFL Network's Top 100 players for 2020 for excluding Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz. Many of the modern-era players to whom hes statistically comparable played well into their 30s. Ten of those 12 are in the Hall -- Elliott and Adrian Peterson are the other two. James Harrison was a backup for four seasons, started regularly for the first time at 29, and probably won't make the Hall of Fame despite a pretty spectacular peak. Archive: Every podcast from Barnwell . After missing the postseason for the first time in four years, the Green Bay Packers will now spend their offseason with one topic at the forefront of their internal conversations: the future of Aaron Rodgers. Its not at all random that hes become a big-time NFL player. Gronkowski dominated at his position, played a key role on four Super Bowl winners, was on the all-2010s team and a first time All-Pro on four occasions. Only nine players have done that in league history; outside of Green, the only player of the bunch who isn't in the Hall of Fame or a lock to get in is offensive tackle Richmond Webb, who played a much less notable position. Only Chandler Jones and Aaron Donald have more sacks since the start of 2017. Unless Evans has a Powell-esque decline or gets radically overshadowed by a teammate la Holt with Isaac Bruce, then Evans seems to have a good chance to get into the Hall eventually. The content on this page is for informational purposes only. Running backs mean less than they have in the past, but Terrell Davis just made the Hall for what really amounted to a three-season stretch as the best running back in football. There are four notable first-time eligibles on this ballot: running back Adrian Peterson, tight end Rob Gronkowski, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and wide receiver Antonio Brown. I think the PED suspensions could help keep out players like Edelman and Lane Johnson, but it's tough to imagine Peterson not making it. QB Anthony Richardson rejects 'project label' entering combine, Texans terminate center Justin Britt's contract, Bun B, Badu, J.J. Watt celebrate RodeoHouston Southern Takeover. Likely (70% to 99%): RB Ezekiel Elliott, G Zack Martin, OT Tyron Smith. You can't make the Hall of Fame while you're still in pads, but Mike Evans has been making his case over the past six seasons. The Notre Dame product probably needs a second one to have a viable shot at Canton. If he can follow in Patrick Mahomes' footsteps and win a Super Bowl this year, Jackson will have an impeccable rsum to start his career. Greg Rajan is the senior editor for Texas Sports Nation, the Houston Chronicle's sports website, and also curates the daily TXSN newsletter and writes about sports media. The Best Wide Receivers of AllTime. Lock (100%): RB Adrian Peterson. There could still be a season in which Mike Zimmer needs to use Barr as an edge rusher and he ends up with 10 sacks, but that's not going to be enough. Edelman has never made a Pro Bowl, but the only . Elroy 'Crazylegs' Hirsch, future Hall of Fame wide receiver, led the best draft class in Rams history in 1945. Giants fans would be happy if Thomas solidified a position that has been a mess since Will Beatty tore his pec in 2015. Likely (70% to 99%): DT Geno Atkins. It's possible to make the Hall of Fame as a lineman without an All-Pro appearance, but the only guy to do it since the merger is Jackie Slater. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. will Evans play and how productive will he be? The former Ozen High star and 14-year NBA vet has more on his mind than basketball, offering essays on life, his family and America. We don't talk enough about Hunter, who only has two Pro Bowl nods over his first five seasons. Work to do (10% to 39%): QB Jared Goff, OT Andrew Whitworth, P Johnny Hekker. Meanwhile on offense, receiver Allen Robinson's three-year, $46.5 million contract (signed last spring) comes with $15.2 million guaranteed in 2023. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Za'Darius Smith might have been the best pass-rusher in the league last season and has been great over the past two years on a snap-by-snap basis, but he turns 28 in September. He has stayed healthy and productive, so that hasn't been the issue. The Hall is forgiving of running backs, and Bell's versatility should age well, but he has missed a lot of time through injuries, suspensions and his 2018 holdout. It was a good weekend for wide receivers at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Lock (100%): DE J.J. Watt. Martin, who also turns 30 during the season, might not even need another nod. If pro football did what hockey used to and waive the waiting period for the likes of Gordie Howe, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, it could be argued Brady deserves the same treatment. Exhibits Interactive Experiences Gear Shop Pit Stop Caf Accessibility Champ the Cheetah. Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. He ranks seventh all-time in receiving touchdowns (116), 30th in yards (11,841) and 17th in receptions (955). He made it to four Pro Bowls in his first five seasons with the Ravens, and while that's the sort of production we associate with Hall of Famers, he wasn't able to earn a first-team All-Pro nod over that stretch. Of the nine corners who have debuted since the NFL-AFL merger and made the Hall of Fame, just two had been a first-team All-Pro by their third season, which puts White in good company alongside Rod Woodson and then-corner Ronnie Lott. I think Patrick Willis is going to make it in after an eight-year career in which he racked up seven Pro Bowl appearances and five first-team All-Pro nods and retired as he turned 30. He started his career with seven Pro Bowls in seven seasons, which is rarefied air. Both players are on a streak, and their chances depend on keeping that streak going. The list of players who have done that isn't long, as it consists of Lawrence Taylor, Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith, Patrick Willis, Aaron Donald and Martin. That's three Hall of Famers, two locks, and Martin, who would be a lock if the Hall valued interior linemen. In the running (40% to 69%): C Maurkice Pouncey, LB T.J. Watt. Likely (70% to 99%): S Earl Thomas. Once again, its wait til next year for Texans great Andre Johnson when it comes to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Just six of 32 Hall-eligible winners made it to Canton, although that's going to rise in the years to come as the likes of Charles Woodson and Julius Peppers win enshrinement. Members of the Ring of Honor are recognized with a banner on the facade of the Metrodome's upper deck, forever living in Vikings lore. Bakhtiari, likewise, is blocked by Tyron Smith. The Nebraska product nearly won a Super Bowl with the Rams in 2018, but a win with the Bucs and one more All-Pro appearance would greatly help his chances.