If only the bronzed-bust room of Canton were like horseshoes, Floyd Little and Randy Gradishar might have felt better about the Pro Football Hall of Fame senior committee vote Wednesday.
As Hall of Fame candidates, Little and Gradishar may be getting closer to Canton, as both were among the 15 finalists considered for nomination by the seniors committee. But like so many other times before, the Broncos greats were snubbed in the end.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame seniors committee nominated former Dallas Cowboys receiver Bob Hayes and Atlanta Falcons defensive end Claude Humphrey to be among the 17 finalists submitted for election on Jan. 31, 2009, the eve of Super Bowl XLIII.
The senior committee confirmed that Little, the Broncos’ star running back from 1967-75, and Gradishar, middle linebacker of the Orange Crush defense in the 1970s, were among the 15 senior candidates up for discussion this year.
That was hardly consolation for Gradishar, who wasn’t ready to comment when first told of the news Wednesday, and Little, the Broncos’ first superstar who retired as the NFL’s seventh-leading rusher. The six ahead of him are all in the Hall of Fame.
“I’m very disappointed,” said Little, who received an e-mail Wednesday from Hall of Famer Ken Houston expressing his disbelief. “I feel like I just got run over by a truck. Of all the 30 years I’ve been out of the game, I thought this was my best shot. I don’t get it.”
Since 1994, 17 of the 20 senior committee nominees have gone on to receive the necessary 80 percent of the vote from the Hall’s Board of Selectors. The three who didn’t get past the final election were Jerry Kramer in 1997, Hayes in 2004 and Marshall Goldberg last year.
Little understands the nomination for Humphrey, who would become the first Falcon enshrined. A five-time All Pro, Humphrey had 122 career sacks.
But Hayes, whose post-career drug problem landed him in prison for 10 months, would become the 11th Cowboy if he gets through the final election. The Broncos have just two Hall of Famers: John Elway and Gary Zimmerman, who played seven of his 12 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings.
Footnotes.
Darrell Jackson is healthy, but isn’t playing Friday, an indication he will be a starting receiver in the season-opener at Oakland. Jackson is expected to fill the position vacated by the suspended Brandon Marshall. . . . Tight end Tony Scheffler may be playing behind Nate Jackson and Daniel Graham, but he will get starter treatment and not play Friday at Arizona. . . . Defensive tackle Ebenezer Ekuban, who appears to be on the roster bubble, returned to practice after missing the past two weeks with back problems.
Mike Klis, The Denver Post
