Former Broncos Dan Reeves, Rod Smith among Hall of Fame candidates

[Denver Native (Carol)]

Three former Broncos players and former head coach Dan Reeves​ are on the preliminary list of candidates for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2012.

Joining Reeves are running back Terrell Davis​, safety Steve Atwater​ and wide receiver Rod Smith, who is on the list in his first year of eligibility. The initial list will be trimmed to 25 modern-era candidates by mid November and that list of 25 semifinalists will be cut to 15 modern-era finalists in early January.

rest of article - http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_18997282?source=rss&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

[Nomad]

studbucket did a good job with Floyd Little, I wonder if he'll do the same for one of these guys.

[T.K.O.]

Rod is a great player & human being !
he beat the odds and stayed humble his entire career.
the hardest working udfa ive ever seen...and he stopped to say hi to my son at a game years ago and high fived him after the game.
had a huge impact on my boy and still a cherished memory:salute:
he deserves the induction !!!!!!!!

[Denver Native (Carol)]

studbucket did a good job with Floyd Little, I wonder if he'll do the same for one of these guys.

That was for any player now considered a senior - therefore, I would think there would be a pitch for either Meck, Gradashier, etc.

[OrangeHoof]

I'm thinking Reeves is the only one who could be a finalist.

[claymore]

I hope the best for both. I dont have any faith that either will make it though. Man Rod Smith deserves it though.

[Denver Native (Carol)]

According to the following, Meck is also on the list:


Linebackers
Cornelius Bennett, Kevin Greene (also DE), Ken Harvey, Clay Matthews, Karl Mecklenburg, Sam Mills

http://www.profootballhof.com/enshrinement/2011/9/28/modern-era-nominees-for-the-class-of-2012/

[The Glue Factory]

Gradishar deserves it much more than Meck. I'm not saying Meck shouldn't be in as well, just that Gradishar's clock is ticking a lot faster than Meck's. We need Gradishar in ASAP!

[CoachChaz]

Rod is a great player & human being !
he beat the odds and stayed humble his entire career.
the hardest working udfa ive ever seen...and he stopped to say hi to my son at a game years ago and high fived him after the game.
had a huge impact on my boy and still a cherished memory:salute:
he deserves the induction !!!!!!!!

Being a good human will be his downfall. Other than one more ring...what did Michael Irvin ever do that is significantly statistically better than Smith?

He kept his name in the headlines and whined until he was voted in. Smith is nothing like that and wiil suffer the consequences

[BroncoStud]

Smith should be a no-brainer, he was a truly great WR for a long time.

[Joel]

I'd take all of them, but the only mortal lock seems like Dan "the Ring Man" Reeves. Terrell Davis will probably get screwed by the shortness of his career, though I'm hopeful the best playoff back ever will make it (very few backs had their stats go UP as they progressed in the playoffs.) Atwater deserves it if only for being the man who woke the League from the Nigerian Nightmare.

Rod is the guy I'd really love to see inducted though. He was and remains a class act on and off the field; humble, hard working and excellent throughout his career. I still can't believe he made the Pro Bowl on a hip his doctor later said he shouldn't even have been able to walk on, let alone play. He wasn't flashy, but he was smart, ran perfect routes and found ways to get open and bring in balls most guys couldn't, which is my kind of receiver. In the midst of all that, during an era that's become infamous for hired gun prima donnas, he restructured a new contract and gave back money just so the team could make the cap and keep other vital players. Fourteen years: ONE team; how many guys can say that these days?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_Smith_(American_football)#Awards_and_accomplis hments

Not bad for a guy nobody wanted. :salute:

[G_Money]

Atwater was on the All-90s team. He was the best safety OF THE DECADE. IMO Atwater is getting the biggest shafting, but safeties just don't get in. There are what, 9 total in the history of the league? And only glory-boy Ronnie Lott played in the last 30 years. Troy and Ed will likely get in from this current collection of talent, but Steve is probably not gonna make it, and I think that's a shame.

Gradishar should get in, but won't IMO. Same story, different year.

Meck is comparable to Carl Banks who made the Hall eventually, but Banks won titles in the biggest media town in the country, while Meck toiled away in a cow town filled with tumbleweeds, apparently. He's not getting in.

TD isn't making it. No back in the last 50 years is within 30 games of his small career total except for Gayle Sayers, who had a movie made about him that swayed voters. I think TD had HOF talent, but I don't see him making it in. I'd LOVE to be wrong.

And as for Rod...I think he can make it. "Best undrafted receiver of all time" has a nice ring to it, and he IS comparable to Irvin. He's not a self-promoter, as Coach points out, which works against him, but I think he can make it.

Not for a few years, though.

~G