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My turn to give Hall passes
Updated: Wednesday January 24, 2001 9:21 PM
TAMPA, Fla. -- Early Saturday morning we will sit down for a few hours and select the members of the Hall of Fame Class of 2001. Nothing that we do as writers, and in this case, selectors, will ever have as big an influence on people's lives. It is, when you think of it, a terrifying responsibility. The worst part of it is having to neglect a deserving candidate, a great player or coach, because of the crunch of numbers. Since I got here I've been asked 1) What I think the chances are for various candidates, and 2) How I'm going to vote. I'll try to answer both questions here, although I'm still undecided on some people. In alphabetical order, starting with the Seniors candidate: Nick Buoniconti: This year I wasn't on the Seniors Committee, a rotating group of five selectors that meets in June and makes its choice from a large and impressive cast. Except for one time, I've always gone with the Committee's man, and when I'm a Committee member, I expect the same courtesy, because a lot of honest effort goes into finding the most deserving candidate. Buoniconti has my vote. He certainly qualifies. And now you want to know what the one time was when I nixed a Seniors' guy. Sorry, that's giving away a secret, but I'll just mention that I opposed his choice from the get-go because it was a railroad job. His college roommate was the Hall of Fame member who served as "advisor" to the Committee and pushed through his candidacy. Harry Carson: Maybe the finest goal line and short-yardage MLB in history. Emotional leader of great Giants defenses for a decade, then the world found out about him when the Giants won their first Super Bowl. Yes, I'll vote for him, but I'd rate his chances of making it in this year only about 50-50. Dave Casper: I'll be working very hard on his behalf because, as I've written many times, he's the best tight end I've ever seen. What are his chances? Good, I hope. Dan Hampton: Terrific competitor. The anchor man on Buddy Ryan's Super Bowl Bears defense. Constantly had to fight the double team. Played the run, played the pass, made everyone around him better. Never took a play off. He has my vote. I'm not sure about his chances.
Lester Hayes: In the Raiders' Super Bowl season of 1980, he scored higher on my chart than any cornerback I've ever graded. Absolutely in another zone, particularly toward the end of the year. Good in other seasons, but he never quite measured up to that one fabulous stretch of games. I'd vote for him if one of my top guys gets eliminated early on. I don't like his chances very well for this session. Marv Levy: This is a tough one. Coached four straight Super Bowl teams, which is just about impossible now in this era of free agency. Never won a title, which will cost him votes. Ex-Bills who played for him told me they're rooting very hard for him to make it. It's going to be tough for Marv because he'll be going against Bill Parcells, and I don't think the selectors will take two coaches in the same year. Emotionally, I'm in his corner. I'll have to see what the action on the floor is like before I cast my final vote. He'll definitely be on my preliminary list, when the number of candidates is reduced to 10. Art Monk: His name has come up for years, and I've never voted for him and have always caught heat for it. My argument is always paired with my reasons for pushing hard for Lynn Swann. Quantity vs. quality. Monk caught a million passes, most of them eight-to-10-yard hooks. Swann made spectacular catches at the championship level. I can't gauge Monk's chances this time. Mike Munchak: Sturdy, highly respected guard for the Oilers. His biggest supporters are his ex-teammates. Could have been an all-time great except for recurring knee injuries. He'll be in my top-10 list. After that, I'm not sure. I have a feeling that his presenters will come to the session armed with many tributes from big-name players, and that might swing it for him. Bill Parcells: This will produce the most action of the day. It will be pointed out that he made our lives tougher, that he started the reprehensible practice of declaring his assistant coaches off limits to the press, that he lied a lot. I know that there will be a few selectors who will utter no word for or against him but will withhold their vote as a payback. The biggest argument against him will be that he's so capricious that he just might decide to unretire in a year or two and return to the arena, and although it's not comfortable for an active coach to be already enshrined, it's not strictly against the rules, if he has come out of retirement. The counter-argument is that Bill Walsh returned as a general manager after he had retired and had been enshrined as a coach, and nobody got upset. There's another feeling that also arises from time to time: Let's vote him in but not this year, not on the first ballot. Let him wait his turn. I've never understood that one, but it has its adherents. Grudgingly, I will cast my vote in his favor because I feel he was a brilliant coach and fully deserving. I say grudgingly because he has certainly made my life tougher through the years. I can't predict how the selectors will go, but the debate will rage hot and heavy. Jackie Slater: A monument. A proud warrior who gave 20 years to the L.A. Rams and conducted himself with great class and dignity throughout. I wish I could figure out a way to vote for Jackie. He'll certainly be on my first ballot. After that, it depends on how the voting goes. His chances depend on the eloquence and strength of his presentation. I know some of you out there feel this is unfair, but it's the way it works. He and Munchak will cost each other votes because there are some selectors who simply will not go for two offensive linemen. John Stallworth: I've written this so many times that you're sick of hearing it, and when Eddie Bouchette of Pittsburgh presents him, along with Swann, I'll sound off again on how deleterious it is to bring up two Steelers, same position, same era as a paired entry. They just knock each other off, and they might again. I can't vote for both, and I've been in Swann's corner for years. Lynn Swann: Here we go. His detractors will point to his relatively low career numbers, especially compared to the 100-catch seasons of today. I'll raise my little hand and mention how great he was when the stakes were highest. In the past it has gone down to the wire with him, when only a yea or nay vote was needed -- for god's sake, give the guy a break -- and still there were people who shot him down. You have to guard against ripping these folks, because then they'll get even with you by dinging your man. I feel that sooner or later Swann will make it. I just hope it's sooner. Ralph Wilson, Jr.: He's a nice guy and he has been around a long time, and now the whole Buffalo situation seems to be collapsing around him. I don't vote for owners very often. I feel they should have their own wing and shouldn't be in a competitive situation with players. My vote is a nay. I don't think he'll get past the preliminary round. Ron Yary: I thought he was a fine drive-blocker at USC. I thought he was functional and efficient, blocking for the run, with the Vikings. At the Super Bowl level, he seems to have run into a string of bad days, particularly against the Steelers' L.C. Greenwood in '75. The pro-Yary letters have been pouring in. Someone has been working very hard to orchestrate a campaign on his behalf. Last year, or maybe it was the year before, Hank Stram was the letter-writers' blue plate special. I don't like these letters, especially when they're accompanied by statistics, which may or may not be accurate, particularly when they bear the heading of a legislator or corporate official. The other selectors' don't, either. Some day the world will catch on to the fact that these things have a negative effect. A person who has helped me greatly through the years, whose opinion I respect, is very heavily in Yary's corner. I told him I would give his candidacy careful consideration, unlike in previous years, when I automatically wrote down my "nay." I'll consider it. Don't know which way I'll go. I don't think he'll make it. Jack Youngblood: I spoke on his behalf last year and I will again. What does a guy have to do, for goodness' sake? Tireless, relentless pass-rushing end, great competitor who played on a broken leg. Came down to the final yea or nay last year, then he was blindsided by the assassins. A shame. I'd like to believe that he'll finally get in this time. Sports Illustrated senior writer Paul Zimmerman covers the NFL for the magazine and CNNSI.com. His "Inside Football" column and Mailbag appear weekly on CNNSI.com. To send a question to Dr. Z, click here. The opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer.
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