2014 Football Hall of Fame Class Announced
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Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — The Pro Football Hall of Fame will have seven new members inducted this coming August. Michael Strahan, Walter Jones, Derrick Brooks, Andre Reed, Aeneas Williams, Ray Guy and Claude Humphrey were all selected by the Hall’s Board of Selectors on Saturday.
Deliberations lasted nine hours in what is believed to be the longest-ever meeting to decide who would be enshrined in Canton, Ohio. Both Jones and Brooks were in their first year of eligibility while Guy and Humphrey were voted in by the Hall’s Seniors Committee.
Strahan, the former New York Giants defensive end, was a five-time All-Pro selection and ranks fifth all-time in sacks with 141.5. In 2001 he set a single-season record with 22.5 sacks and won a Super Bowl with New York in 2007.
Jones was a nine-time Pro Bowler for the Seattle Seahawks and started all 180 games in his 12-year career. A member of the NFL All-Decade team for the 2000s, Jones allowed just 23 sacks throughout his career.
In 14 seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brooks made 11 Pro Bowls and was the league Defensive Player of the Year in 2002. The linebacker was a part of Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl championship team in 2002, returning an interception for a touchdown.
After being a finalist for the Hall seven times before, Reed was selected in his ninth year of eligibility. The former Buffalo Bills wide receiver ranks fifth all-time in postseason receptions with 85 and was the teams leading receiver all four years in which Buffalo reached the Super Bowl.
A safety and cornerback, Williams played for the Arizona Cardinals and was an eight-time Pro Bowl Selection. The 14-year veteran recorded 55 career interceptions, returning nine for touchdowns.
Guy, who played for the both the Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders, is the first punter to ever be inducted. After his eligibility as a modern-era candidate expired, Guy joines Jan Stenerud as the only kickers in the Hall.
The Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1968, Humphrey was the third overall pick in the ’68 draft. Humphrey played for both the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles and was credited with 122 career sacks despite the fact that the sack was not an official league statistic until after he retired.
All seven inductees will be enshrined at the Pro Football Hall of Fame on August 2 in Canton, Ohio.
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