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In den sozialen Medien gabe es kürzlich Diskussionen bzgl. HOF 2026.
Hier mal ein, etwas älterer Artikel - ich schaffe es gerade nicht, den zu übersetzen.

We all assume ... OK, we all know ... that Drew Brees will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer when he becomes eligible for the Class of 2026. We also believe that Larry Fitzgerald will join him in Canton on his first try, making next year the first since 2021 the Hall has had multiple first-ballot choices. But wait. There's someone missing from this conversation.

What about ... Frank Gore?

He's eligible in 2026, too, and all he did in 16 years as a running back was accumulate more yards than all but two others in NFL history – Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton. Yet his name almost never is mentioned in connection with first-ballot favorites, while Brees and Fitzgerald almost always are.

Simple question: Why?

With 16,000 yards, Gore produced 731 more yards rushing than fourth-place finisher, Barry Sanders. Yet Sanders was a first-ballot choice. So was LaDainian Tomlinson, who ranks seventh with 13,684. In fact, of the top seven all-time rushing leaders, four were elected on the first ballot, two aren't yet eligible (Gore and Adrian Peterson) and one – Curtis Martin, fifth on the list with 14,101 yards -- was elected on his third try.

If you ask Hall voters to whom Gore is most comparable, they might say Martin – only because they didn't envision him as a first-ballot Hall of Famer, either. Yet Gore had more yards rushing, more combined yards (19,985-17,430), a better yards-per-carry average (4.3-4.0), slightly fewer touchdowns (101-99), and one less 1,000-yard season (10-9).He also played longer, with an NFL record 241 games for running backs to Martin's 168.

In other years, that resume might merit first-ballot attention. But not in Gore's case. At least not now.

"Stats are for losers," Atlanta coach Raheem Morris once said. "I don't get involved in that stuff."

OK, but Hall-of-Fame voters do. When Antonio Gates was presented for the Class of 2025, one number was hammered again and again – 116, as in touchdowns, more than all tight ends in league history and more ... considerably more ... than each of the three wide receivers under consideration. Furthermore, when cornerback Ken Riley was a senior finalist for the Class of 2023, guess what was front and center in the discussion? If you said his 65 interceptions, go to the head of the class. Riley's total was fifth all time, tying him with first-ballot inductee Charles Woodson.

The hole in Gore's candidacy has less to do with numbers than it does one post-season accolade. He was never a first-team All-Pro and was second-team just once. He was also a five-time Pro Bowler and member of the 2010s' all-decade team. Martin, on the other hand, was a one-time first-team All-Pro, two-time second-teamer and, like Gore, a five-time Pro Bowler. He also led the league in rushing (2004), but, unlike Gore, wasn't chosen to an all-decade team.

The popular criticism of Gore is that he was more a compiler than an elite back, with detractors noting that he was among the league's top five rushers only once in 16 seasons. By comparison, they point out that, in four fewer years, Martin four times finished in the top five and had one more 1,000-yard year.

"If you're honest about it," Hall-of-Fame voter Ron Borges wrote in 2022, "Frank Gore was never the best running back of his era. Not once in 16 years."

Borges has a point. It's the same one put into play vs. Eli Manning who, like Gore, played 16 seasons but was never an All-Pro. One difference: Manning not only was a two-time Super Bowl winner; he was a two-time Super Bowl MVP. But give Gore this: The guy was a medical marvel. I mean, how many running backs can you name who survived 16 seasons? There's Marcus Allen, Tony Richardson, Fred McAfee and Lorenzo Neal ... except Richardson, McAfee and Neal were fullbacks.

That leaves Gore and Allen in a select club.

"Tremendous staying power," historian John Turney said of Gore, "but only All-Pro level once. He was a Pro Bowl-level fairly often, but that does not scream 'first ballot.' "

Neither does this: The Hall's new voting procedures make it possible (likely?) that three finalists are elected again next year. If that happens, do you honestly believe voters have three first-ballot candidates jump the queue? Me, neither. Besides, look what just happened: With Luke Kuechly and Adam Vinatieri on the board, there was no first-ballot inductee this year. Furthermore, only three have been chosen in the past four years.

"Gore is a Hall of Famer," said historian Ken Crippen, "but not first-ballot. I know that he accumulated a lot of yards over a long career, but I don't have him on the same level as Barry Sanders or Jim Brown. Still a Hall of Famer, though."

Bingo.

Sooner or later, he's enshrined, and for all the right reasons. Because, in the end, all that matters about his resume is that he was the NFL's third all-time leader in rushing. Period. I don't care how he did it or for how long. The numbers speak for themselves. Frank Gore is a Hall of Famer waiting to happen. It just might take a few years.

Gibt es eigentlich einen aktuellen Stand?

Meiner ist vom Dezember mit den Nominierungen (player - moder era):

Quarterbacks: Drew Brees, Eli Manning, Philip Rivers.
Wide Receivers: Larry Fitzgerald, Torry Holt, Steve Smith Sr., Hines Ward, Reggie Wayne.
Running Backs: Frank Gore, Fred Taylor.
Tight Ends: Jason Witten.
Offensive Line: Willie Anderson, Jahri Evans, Marshal Yanda.
Linebackers: Luke Kuechly, Terrell Suggs.
Defensive Backs: Darren Woodson.
Kickers: Adam Vinatieri.
Defensive Tackle: Kevin Williams.

Roger Craig ist übrigens bei den Seniors auch Finalist.
Ich glaube kaum, dass man zwei 49ers aufnimmt.
Und nächstes Jahr kommt mit Adrian Peterson ein, meiner Meinung nach, zukünftiger HOF-Runningback dazu.

Schwierig

Eigentlich müsste Rivers erst mal wieder fünf Jahre aus dem Rennen sein.

Zitat von: snoopy am Mo, 26. Jan. ’26, 17:51Eigentlich müsste Rivers erst mal wieder fünf Jahre aus dem Rennen sein.

Dem ist so

Dieses Jahr ist Frank Gore bei unseren ATGs wählbar.
Wahlen sind so Ende Mai-Juni......