A matter of days ago, 43-year-old Kurt Warner was seriously interested in making a comeback with the quarterback-needy Cardinals. On Thursday night, he joined Orlando Pace and Junior Seau as Pro Football Hall of Fame finalists in their first year of eligibility.
Kurt Warner, Orlando Pace among 2015 Hall of Fame finalists
Warner, Pace and the late Junior Seau are all finalists in their first year of Canton eligibility.
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Warner, a two-time NFL MVP who guided the St. Louis Rams to a Super Bowl victory in 2000, was among 15 Canton finalists announced on NFL Network. That number also includes Morten Andersen, Jerome Bettis, Tim Brown, Terrell Davis, Kevin Greene, Charles Haley, Marvin Harrison, John Lynch, Will Shields and coaches Don Coryell, Tony Dungy and Jimmy Johnson. Former NFL execs Bill Polian and Ron Wolf were included in the contributor category and Mick Tingelhoff is the lone senior finalist.
Those who didn’t make the cut in their first year of eligibility include Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt, Edgerrin James, Ty Law and Kevin Mawae.
Pace was the man who protected Warner’s blind side during that Rams’ Super Bowl run. A five-time All-Pro selection during his 13-year career, the dominant offensive tackle blocked for three straight NFL MVPs. Seau, who racked up eight All-Pro selections and the 1992 Defensive Player of the Year award, was one of the greatest linebackers in league history. He tragically committed suicide in 2012 and a postmortem brain scan later revealed he suffered from CTE.
The rest of the finalists have been waiting their turn in line for some time. Two of the most notable names are Bettis and Davis, dominant running backs who help lead the Steelers and Broncos, respectively, to Super Bowl wins. Bettis is in his fifth year of eligibility; Davis is in his ninth.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2015 will be announced on Saturday, Jan. 31.
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