The Cal product has five Pro Bowls and a first-team All-Pro appearance through his age-30 season. Kittle is the best all-around tight end in football right now, and if you could tell me this minute that he would have a 12-year career, I'd expect him to be a Hall of Famer. In the running (40% to 69%): RB Todd Gurley. Grading the Jamal Adams trade Hester was a (great) returner, which typically doesn't inspire the same sort of fervor as other All-Pro nods, while Jackson actually started with three consecutive All-Pro nods before dropping off and retiring after nine years. Subscribe to Stathead Football: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Pro Football Reference Database. 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. With three rushing titles, a 2,000-yard season and an MVP award in his trophy room, Peterson will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. I believe Evans will be in the NFL Hall of Fame someday, and in this piece I hit on a few of the reasons for my position. I think Rivers probably gets in, but it might take a while. The first game of the 2023 NFL calendar is . Watt, with his three Defensive Player of the Year awards with the Texans, will for sure give Houston another Hall of Famer. Returning to form and earning a seventh Pro Bowl nod in his first season with the Ravens got Thomas back on track. Seymour made it to seven Pro Bowls and three All-Pro teams and hasn't made it to the Hall of Fame, but Thomas was more conspicuous at safety and was a key member of a legendary defense. Peters might look better in the long term than he does now. Over that five-year span, Landry ranks third in the NFL in catches and seventh in receiving yards. Like Campbell, Heyward didn't earn widespread notoriety until he was approaching 30, with the Steelers star becoming a first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowler for the first time in his seventh season. All but Gronkowski generated controversial off-field headlines, but the Hall voters only debate what is accomplished on the field. In the running (40% to 69%): WR Odell Beckham Jr., WR Jarvis Landry. Work to do (10% to 39%): RB Melvin Gordon, DE Jurrell Casey. We're in a pass-happy era, but Thomas has more receptions (470) and receiving yards (5,512) than any other players in league history through their first four seasons. He might not make it on the first ballot, but he should make it eventually. 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. 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 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. Likely (60% to 99%): RB Frank Gore. 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. 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. 1 with seven receiving touchdowns as well as 1,407 air yards and yards after the catch combined (perAirYards.com). Thomas now has three Pro Bowls and two first-team All-Pro nods in four years, and while there might be some sort of drop-off if Brees retires, the Ohio State product did just fine with Teddy Bridgewater on the field in 2019. 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. At the combine, he measured in at 6-foot-5 and 231 pounds and ran an impressive 4.53-second 40-yard dash. He was on the All-2000s team, a three-time first team All-Pro and made eight Pro Bowls. So this is really a list of 15. Worthy Hall of Fame (HOF) NFL Wide Receivers: The shoo-ins Let's start by running through five obvious cases of overly-qualified receivers who have not yet been enshrined. Future Hall of Fame wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, though, has a different team in mind for Rodgers. 2 pick was a four-time Pro Bowler and a three-time All-Pro during his five seasons in Detroit. SEA | TB | TEN | WSH. 19 Won't: Maurice Jones-Drew More NFL coverage . They both need multiple All-Pro seasons before they can rise up the ranks. Of the seven players eligible for the Hall of Fame who made it to the Pro Bowl in their age-21 campaign, six are in the Hall. You probably dont need me to tell you that in 2018 Moss became the most recent receiver to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. I'll do a little bit of projecting here and there, given historical aging curves and what we know about each player's injury history, but this is almost entirely about what each player has done so far. Likely (70% to 99%): CB Richard Sherman. Exhibits Interactive Experiences Gear Shop Pit Stop Caf Accessibility Champ the Cheetah. Meanwhile, Johnson spent the first 12 years of his career with the expansion Texans, who didnt make the playoffs until his ninth season with quarterback play that ran the gamut from dreadful to above average. Tickets go on sale on Wednesday, September 1st at: www.radiohalloffame.com. He was a Pro Bowler in 2017 and has 37.5 sacks over his first four pro seasons, but he was overshadowed a bit by Campbell over that time frame. The two first-time eligible players who stand out on next years ballot are defensive end Julius Peppers and tight end Antonio Gates. Membership Foundation Corporate Partners Artifact Donations Commemorative Brick . A healthy, available Garrett is a Defensive Player of the Year candidate and could rise quickly. Wentz's injury history this early in his career also doesn't bode well for his chances of playing deep into his 30s. 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. And as much as everyone loves Boldin, he was never dominant enough to keep his former teammate out of Canton. He's ahead of guys like Von Miller, Dwight Freeney, Terrell Suggs and Bruce Smith, and while he played more games than all but Suggs, the fact that he was a productive pass-rusher from the jump as a 21-year-old is a positive. Edelman has never made a Pro Bowl, but the only . Okudah's presence owes to his draft status as the No. Typically, there are between 45 and 50 Hall of Famers playing at any one time. 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. While Tucker would be the overwhelming choice as the best kicker in football, the Hall has elected just two full-time kickers in its history. Work to do (10% to 39%): RB Mark Ingram, OT Ronnie Stanley, DE Calais Campbell. On the latest episode of the Let's Go! McCardell and Smith dubbed "Thunder . Longtime teammate Jeff Bagwell, meanwhile, had to wait until his seventh year on the ballot before gaining enshrinement to Cooperstown. What will define Eric Bieniemy's success? All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. Five of the 40 defensive players chosen among the top three picks of the draft since 1970 who are eligible for the Hall are enshrined, a percentage that will rise as players like Julius Peppers and Von Miller eventually become eligible. If you need something more, Fitzgerald's 2008 playoff run is probably the best postseason from any receiver in league history. Wagner turned 30 in June, and after eight seasons in the league, he has six Pro Bowl appearances and five first-team All-Pro nominations. But given the relatively small number of modern-era inductees each year a minimum of three and maximum of five now is a good time to look at the ballot in upcoming years and notable players wholl become eligible for election and may impact Johnsons fate with voters. Wagner also has a Super Bowl victory and, quite famously, an MVP vote from Tony Dungy on his rsum. In the running (40% to 69%): DT Ndamukong Suh. He also came up with an interception while winning his first Super Bowl, which helps his case. In the running (40% to 69%): DE Chandler Jones. Future Hall of Fame Wide Receiver Gushes Over Giants' Kadarius Toney 123 Shares By Vinny Somma Updated Apr 30, 2021 at 1:11pm Getty Kadarius Toney #1 of the Florida Gators reacts after. The players listed below are the top 250 HOFm-rated players who played WR starting in 1955 or later for at least 50 career games. His case is very strong for a first-ballot election. Harris has four Pro Bowls and a first-team All-Pro appearance in 2016, but his play has slipped over the past couple of years, and smaller cornerbacks typically don't do well after they turn 30. 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. Hilton, DE Justin Houston, DT DeForest Buckner, CB Xavier Rhodes. Itll be interesting to see if his postseason prowess carries him, as it arguably did Lynn Swann in his eventual election. In related news, the Cowboys also have a running back likely bound for the Hall. 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. Work to do (10% to 39%): WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, G David DeCastro, DE Cameron Heyward, S Minkah Fitzpatrick. In other words, instead of trying to project their chances by guessing what they'll do in the future, I'm looking at what they've done so far, comparing them to players at similar points in their careers, and seeing how often players with those sorts of careers made it into the Hall of Fame. Jaguars won't spend big, but here are five players they could target in free agency, 2023 NFL franchise tag tracker: Raiders tag Josh Jacobs, the NFL's rushing leader. Ten years after he retires, we're more likely to look at his two first-team All-Pro nods and forget those times he guessed wrong and gave up touchdowns with the Chiefs and Rams. Work to do (10% to 39%): DE Yannick Ngakoue. 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. Complicating things for Johnson is the logjam of candidates at his position. Regardless of age, Evans has had an impressive start to his career. It's tough to rack up interceptions in the modern NFL, but Peters has 27 since entering the league, nine more than any other player. 8/16/2011. Lock (100%): LB Von Miller. He was excellent in his third season, but since then, his production has roughly been in line with that of Robby Anderson. I'll start with the two young players. He's an easy Hall of Famer. One more nomination should get Smith in. Hall of Fame Wide Receivers. Lock (100%): DT Aaron Donald. Players the Jaguars could target Erica Farber. Mack is entering what is likely to be his final season with the Falcons. The big deal he signed with the Jags and the subsequent 14.5-sack campaign he posted in leading them to the AFC Championship Game turned the tide, as Campbell was a first-team All-Pro and made three consecutive Pro Bowl trips with Jacksonville. On a weekly basis, Evans is a volatile player, but his year-over-year production has been incredibly consistent. "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. There aren't any Dolphins who would appear to have greater than a 10% chance of making the Hall of Fame. Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports. All but. The Defensive Player of the Year candidate was named a first-team All-Pro in 2015 and 2019, but he hasn't received any other nominations across his other five pro seasons. Byard was a first-team All-Pro in 2017 when he led the league with eight picks, but despite playing at an upper-echelon level over the ensuing two seasons, he hasn't received the same consideration. Work to do (10% to 39%): RB Derrick Henry, OT Taylor Lewan, DE Vic Beasley Jr., S Kevin Byard. Podcast: Stat superlatives Peters might not be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he should get in eventually. 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. Collins was a Defensive Player of the Year candidate in 2016 and has three Pro Bowls across his first five seasons. I'm right there in the 50/50 range. If James gets back there this season, he might even be able to jump into the Likely category. McShay's favorite pick for all 32 teams Cooper has made four Pro Bowls in his first five seasons. Do you have a blog? New league weeks start every Thursday with TNF kickoff. Guy earned six Pro Bowl nominations and three All-Pro picks before turning 30. Joe Fortenbaugh breaks down why Julio Jones is the safer bet over DeAndre Hopkins to lead the league in receiving yards. Heyward reminds me a lot of Campbell; they're prototypical five-technique ends who upped their pass-rushing performance when given more opportunities to get after the quarterback. I've split players into four groups. Likely (70% to 99%): WR Michael Thomas. Heres the top 10 in NFL and AFL history in receiving yardage through 85 games. CLE | DAL | DEN | DET | GB | HOU | IND Lock (100%): TE Jason Witten. Finish reading this entire article absolutely FREE in our app. 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. Is Gore a lock to get into the Hall of Fame? There are another 11 players who aren't yet Hall-eligible, and five of them are locks to do the same. Watson has earned Pro Bowl nods in each of his first two full seasons as a starter, which is easier for quarterbacks than it is for most other positions. He has made five consecutive Pro Bowls and has three first-team All-Pro nods to go with his Defensive Player of the Year trophy from 2016. Round 1: Kiper | McShay | NFL Nation As it stands, though, Gurley doesn't have enough on his rsum to get in. will Evans play and how productive will he be? He was selected No. You could make a case Jones belongs in the Likely category based on his 2017 and 2019 seasons, although I'd argue there's a significant gap between those two campaigns and the rest of his career. Draft a league now and start fresh with a 0-0 record and a shortened schedule. Work to do (10% to 39%): LB Tremaine Edmunds. In the running (40% to 69%): DE Joey Bosa, S Derwin James. This site .css-110721q{color:#0079F0;}contains commercial content. Scouting reports | More draft coverage. In his final college season, he had a nice 69 receptions for 1,394 yards and 12 touchdowns in 13 games as a redshirt sophomore. Hightower has made huge plays in two Super Bowls, having stuffed Marshawn Lynch at the 1-yard line and strip-sacked Matt Ryan, but he has rarely gotten the regular-season attention he deserves. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. That's just about a magic formula for getting into the Hall. Let's run team-by-team and try to estimate each notable player's chances of making it to the Hall of Fame given his current rsum. Will OBJ defy his long-shot odds to lead NFL in receiving yards? Art Monk. First, its hard for young guys to adapt to the NFL. At the same time, Green has missed 23 games over the past two years with injuries. DT | LB | CB | Safety The one-time tight end has made nine Pro Bowls and was a first-team All-Pro twice. Dan Orlovsky denounces the NFL Network's Top 100 players for 2020 for excluding Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz. Sensing that many people might disagree with me, I decided to post a poll on Twitter. The best trade Andy Reid ever made was moving up in the draft for Mahomes in 2017. Jets, Browns tapped for 2023 NFL Hall of Fame Game originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago. . Green. Carmichael was one of the best wide receivers of his era. But lack of team success isnt a disqualifier. Ranking NFL offensive weapons Honestly, the biggest factor holding Evans back right now is his team: The Bucs dont attract a lot of national attention, and they havent been to the postseason since 2007. The only exceptions are a pair of interior offensive linemen (Alan Faneca and Steve Wisniewski) and safety John Lynch. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Goff took a major step backward in 2019 and doesn't appear to be on the same level as the other top quarterbacks in the conference. Landry's hip surgery then looms as a problem; if he can get past it and keep this up, he profiles as a borderline Hall of Famer. The closest comp is Ken Anderson, who had a similar peak and won an MVP award but didn't last quite as long and hasn't been able to get in. David has been supremely underrated during his career, but after earning a first-team All-Pro nod in 2013, he has made it to a lone Pro Bowl over the ensuing six seasons. Gilmore wasn't on track to become a Hall of Famer before he joined the Patriots, having made one Pro Bowl across his first five seasons in Buffalo, but he has made back-to-back first-team All-Pro teams and then won Defensive Player of the Year last season. While Pro Bowls and All-Pro awards are hardly gospel, they're the best measure we have of how league observers valued a particular player in his time. XFL Week 3 preview: Can AJ McCarron, Battlehawks continue their fourth-quarter heroics? I think he'll end up getting in because he has simply racked up numbers year after year without missing much time, although I could also see an argument that he hasn't done enough outside of that one brilliant year. He played 16 seasons, but never led the league in any notable statistical category other than interceptions. What will define Eric Bieniemy's success? Ten of those 12 are in the Hall -- Elliott and Adrian Peterson are the other two. If Kelce can earn that nod in 2020, that might be enough to get him in. He started his career with seven Pro Bowls in seven seasons, which is rarefied air. Left and right arrows move across top level links and expand / close menus in sub levels. Barr made four consecutive Pro Bowls from 2015 to 2018, but it'll be tough for him to get the first-team All-Pro votes he'll need for Canton without racking up significant sack totals. When I last attempted something like this column in June 2016, I gave Beckham a 50% chance of making the Hall of Fame after two dominant seasons as a pro. Making sense of Mahomes' deal Every two-time winner got in easily, so while Watt might not have the longevity he hoped for, the Houston icon could retire tomorrow and get in. 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. Nelson is one of seven players to start his career with two consecutive first-team All-Pro nods, a group that includes four Hall of Famers, Devin Hester and Keith Jackson.