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The argument for Hester is kind of a hard one because the return game has kind of been nerfed a little bit. Teams only kick to the returners now as a tactical choice on kickoffs and teams are more likely (it seems to me anyway) to try and block a punt now if they're desperate for points over trying something on a return. The big push for player safety has kind of hurt that side of special teams. It makes it difficult for you to make the case that he changed the position forever. I guess it depends on what kind of hall of fame philosophy you have - Do you like like a big hall of fame and what are your criteria or do you think it should be reserved for players who either revolutionised the game or have overwhelming statistics? I've always been a bit of the mind that guys should go in if you can't tell the story of the NFL without them and with Hester while I think if the rule changes weren't made and the return game was still a big factor you might have seen some specialists really come into the game because of him but I don't know if you can make that argument now. Though I don't think its unfair to say guys like Tavon Austin and Cordarelle Patterson were taken as high as they were with the hopes they could be similar players. I tend to think of it a little bit like fullbacks. There hasn't been a fullback go into the hall that I can find since the 80s and there were probably some guys opening holes in the early 2000s you could make a case for. Mike Alstott was a 3 time all pro and 6 time pro bowler doing everything in Tampa (his TD record only got broken this year), Tony Richardson blocked for 9 1000 yard rushers in consecutive seasons - 2 time all pro and 3 time pro bowler - will probably get mentioned at a few speeches in the next few years but now that the position is all but an after thought in the modern league and they didn't have a definite statistical impact they're never getting a bust. BlindSite fucked around with this message at 01:44 on Dec 31, 2021 |
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Dec 31, 2021 01:42
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| # ¿ May 18, 2024 12:12 |
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Kawalimus posted:Urlacher and Bettis aren't riffraff by any means. Urlacher had four all-pros, DROY and DPOY. Maybe where he played gave him a boost but those are worthy qualifications. Bettis was a pretty great player again who got in due to being a Steeler. But that doesn't mean he didn't deserve to be in the conversation otherwise. You might say that Bettis isn't riff raff but a lot of people don't think Frank Gore deserves to go in - not saying you're one of them but Bettis' top 10 all time yards status doesn't make a lot of people think he's deserving. I also think it's kind of cool that Gore has exactly 16,000 rushing yards.
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Jan 1, 2022 06:31
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