Readers hope retired Flutie, Smith get their due

	After Flutie starred in the CFL, Buffalo took a chance on him, and the QB quickly proved he could play in the NFL. AP
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	MAILBAG Peter King will answer your questions each week in Monday Morning Quarterback: Tuesday Edition. Your name: Your e-mail address: Your home town: Enter your question:

Three things I'll always remember about Doug Flutie:

1. He would never have had his NFL revival if A.J. Smith, then scouting for the Bills, hadn't believed in him. Smith -- now the San Diego GM and then a key scout whose turf included the Canadian Football League -- sold Marv Levy and the Bills' front office on the fact that Flutie could be an adequate-to -successful NFL player.

Smith was right. That's exactly what Flutie was. In his 40 games in Buffalo, including a 360-yard passing performance at Miami in the 1998 playoffs, Flutie won 67 percent of his starts. He was better than Rob Johnson. That might not be saying much, but Smith was right. Flutie found a home in the NFL, and he was a contributing player for Buffalo, San Diego and New England.

2. Flutie Flakes. Got a box while doing a story on him for Sports Illustrated in 1999. A little sugary, as I recall. Seemed to be sweeter than Frosted Flakes. But it was for a good cause -- autism research. Doug's son, Dougie, is autistic.

3. The chip on his shoulder. I always liked Flutie because he loved the game and played every play like it was his last. But if you questioned his size in 1986, he remembered it in 2004. The feeling of nobody-thinks-I-can-do-it never left him, not for a moment, and it motivated him every day of his career. I think he'll be fabulous on TV, by the way.

Speaking of Flutie, he starts your e-mails.

DOUG FLUTIE FOR THE HALL OF FAME? From Dave Kezziah, of Sherwood, Ore.: "You say Jimmy Smith is not a Hall of Famer, but what about Doug Flutie? If character were the main ingredient, Flutie would be a lock.''

Character is not an ingredient, Dave. We're supposed to consider only on-field stuff. And for that reason, I don't see Flutie making it, even when his six CFL Most Outstanding Player awards are factored in. I just don't think he had enough success on the NFL stage to merit inclusion. The CFL did help Bud Grant gain entry, but the former Winnipeg and Vikings coach had a much better NFL résumé than Flutie.

DON'T GET CAUGHT IN A NUMBERS GAME. From Dan Friedrich of Southbridge, Mass.: "You Hall of Fame guys make me nuts. Lynn Swann was a lock for the Hall, but Jimmy Smith is not? By what principal do you guys decide these things? From where I stand it's beginning to look more and more like the Super Bowl Hall of Fame, where players who happen to be on teams that were lucky enough to win a Super Bowl are put on a pedestal while guys like Smith are ignored. Bottom line: Smith has more than 12,000 yards receiving and Swann has fewer than 5,000. You justify that."

Don't blame or credit me for Swann; I did not vote for him. However, if you put everyone who catches 800 balls into the Hall of Fame, in 2020 up to 20 more receivers will be enshrined in Canton than there are now. Is that right? Is that just? I don't think so. You can't simply use numbers to make your decision on which receivers belong in the Hall of Fame. You have to use your eyes.