Four players in their first year of eligibility are among the 15 finalists in the Professional Football Hall of Fame Class of 2021.
Quarterback Peyton Manning, defender Charles Woodson, wide receiver Calvin Johnson and defensive side Jared Allen top the list of finalists. Up to five of the finalists will be chosen at the end of this month for consecration.
The finalists were announced on Tuesday. It is the second time in the past four years that four players in their first year of eligibility have been finalists in the same year.
The Class 2021 consecration ceremony is scheduled for the week of August 5-9. The Class of 2020 is also scheduled to be consecrated in a separate ceremony that week, because last August’s event was canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Congratulations to QB Peyton Manning for being selected as a Finalist for the # PFHOF21 Class!@Colts | @Broncos pic.twitter.com/hJXjIYSuEU
– Professional Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) January 5, 2021
These four players, with 33 Pro Bowl appearances in their careers, join cornerback Ronde Barber, face Tony Boselli, safety LeRoy Butler, point guard Alan Faneca, wide receiver Torry Holt, safety John Lynch, linebacker Clay Matthews Jr., linebacker Sam Mills, defensive lineman Richard Seymour, linebacker Zach Thomas and wide receiver Reggie Wayne.
It could be the eighth consecutive year that a player in his first year of eligibility is selected, and if three of the players in the first year of eligibility are selected from among the five nominees, it would be the third time in the past four years that three players in their first eligibility year were selected for consecration in the same class.
Champ Bailey, Tony Gonzalez and Ed Reed were consecrated in 2019, while Ray Lewis, Randy Moss and Brian Urlacher were in the class of 2018.
This year marks the eighth time that Lynch was a finalist, the sixth time for Faneca and the fifth time for Boselli.
The list of 15 will now be reduced to five by the end of this month by the Hall of Fame selector board.
Congratulations to DB @CharlesWoodson to be selected as a finalist for the # PFHOF21 Class! @Raiders | @packers pic.twitter.com/m5aebW5OmM
– Professional Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) January 5, 2021
Tom Flores is already a finalist on the Hall’s coaching committee, Bill Nunn is a finalist as a contributor and Drew Pearson is a finalist on the seniors committee. If all three are chosen for consecration, the Hall Class of 2021 will have eight new Hall of Fame.
Manning – with five league MVP awards, 14 Pro Bowl selections, seven top team All-Pro selections, a Comeback Player of the Year award and a Walter Payton Man of the Year award – is one of the league’s most decorated players in history . He was behind the Denver Broncos center when he won the Super Bowl 50 to finish his last season (2015) in the league.
After 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, Manning signed with the Broncos in 2012 – becoming one of the most talented players in changing teams in the era of free agency. The Colts had 11 seasons of 10 wins with Manning as a defender and won the Super Bowl XLI, with Manning chosen as the game’s MVP.
He retired with several single-season and career records, including his 5,477 yard passes and 55 touchdowns in 2013.
Woodson was selected nine times in the Pro Bowl and ended his 18-year career tied for fifth in interceptions – with Ken Riley – at 65. He led the league in nine interceptions for the Green Bay Packers in 2009, and he won a ring of the Super Bowl with the Packers the following season.
The cornerback turned safety also forced 33 fumbles in his career, had 20 sacks and three seasons of 90 tackles, including 113 tackles with the Oakland Raiders at 38.
Johnson played nine seasons for the Detroit Lions before retiring abruptly after the 2015 season, when he had 88 receptions for 1,214 yards and nine touchdowns. He has had five seasons receiving 1,200 yards and is in 31st career.
Because of the Lions’ struggles, something he said later contributed to his retirement, he played in just two postseason, ending with 211 yards received and two touchdowns in his first post-season appearance, a 45-28 loss for the New Orleans Saints in the NFC wild card round that followed the 2011 season.
And Allen, who is 12th on the list of all-time sacks in the league with 136, played for four teams in his 13-year career and led the league in sacks in 2007 (with 15.5) and also in 2011 (with 22).