Honestly I think he should make it first ballot, but like Klecko he's gonna get overlooked. But that the #4 rusher of all time martin won't get it on the first ballot because he's a :jets: saddens me. Oh well
Not counting Joe Klecko, here is what Curtis Martin will be up against in the coming years (I left out some very good players that could make the HOF but not before Martin): Eligible 2010 or prior Chris Carter WR Shannon Sharpe TE Kevin Greene OLB Richard Dent DE Chris Doleman DE Aneas Williams CB / S Charles Haley DE Lester Hayes CB Kenny Easley S Sam Mills LB Sterling Sharp WR Don Coryell Coach Eligible 2011 Marshall Faulk RB Deion Sanders CB Willie Roaf OT Jerome Bettis RB Eligible 2012 Will Shields OG Bill Parcells Coach Bill Cower Coach Eligible 2013 Larry Allen OG Warren Sapp DT Jonathan Ogden OT Michael Strahan DE Eligible 2014 Kurt Warner QB Marvin Harrison WR Priest Holmes RB Junior Seau LB Active (older guys) Brett Favre QB Ray Lewis LB Kevin Mawae C Ladanian Tomlinson RB Terrell Owens WR Orlando Pace OT Tony Gonzales TE Isaac Bruce WR Torry Holt WR Hines Ward WR Derrick Brooks LB Walter Jones OT Active (younger guys) Peyton Manning QB Tom Brady QB Richard Seymore DE Randy Moss WR Alan Faneca OG Steve Hutchinson OG Ed Reed S Troy Polamalu S Antonio Gates TE Active (on their way) Andre Johnson WR Tony Romo QB Larry Fitzgerald WR Phillip Rivers QB Ben Rothlisberger QB Derrell Revis CB Bob Sanders S Nick Mangold C Patrick Willis LB There may also be some coaches (Bellicheck, Fisher, Dungy, Shannahan etc.) that could get some attention. Martin is going to need some luck to get in.
Like NY2K10 said... Curtis is 4th in the NFL in all-time rushing yards... 5 Pro Bowls... 10 straight seasons with 1000+ yards. That is quite a body of work. Plus, he was high-class off the field, if that matters. Anything short of a first-ballot entry into Canton is robbery.
I think the high class thing can matter. You look at Floyd Little. He is a great person and I think that really helped him get in because he is otherwise a very weak candidate. Little was a fine player for sure, but his stats are not overwhelming by any stretch of the imagination. He had 5 solid seasons but there were not off-the-charts great.
It was CJLang. If I remember correctly that particular poster is a Patriots fan. I guess he didn't appreciate Martin's three seasons in NE and/or considers him a traitor.
Notes: Warner and Seau will be eligible in 2015. It's six years after the final season in which the guy played for eligibility. Excluding younger players like Tony Romo, every player you noted will get serious consideration except for Bob Sanders. He has missed an obscene number of games and although he has been impactful when he's played, he's simply missed way too much time. Martin's not going to need luck. He has too much going for him to not get inducted. He really does have Bettis beat unless you want to make a big deal about Bettis winning a SB ring as a backup or being maybe more famous because of a silly nickname or overrated personality. I write that because Bettis has been a dud on TV. He was supposed to be a great commentator. That really hasn't panned out.
Jeeze some people just honestly amaze me. I guess the NE fan didnt pay attention to any pf this numbers:
Faulk, Deion, Roaf, and Curtis are the locks next year. If Bettis gets in over Curtis, then the Hall becomes a bigger joke than the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame (maybe I'm exaggerating, but not really). As for Cris Carter, Tim Brown, Reed, etc... Modern WR's (guys who have a shitload of catches) aren't getting much respect yet. I think those three should get in eventually, but none of those guys are locks. Doleman was a badass. He should be in. Shannon Sharpe angers me on NFL Today, so fuck him. Aeneas Williams should eventually get in, but Curtis gets in first. Curtis Martin is a first-ballot HOF'er.
Look, I know we are all Jet fans here, but anyone that thinks Martin is better than Faulk is simply OUT OF THEIR MIND. There is NOT ONE coach, past, present or future that would take Martin over Faulk. In fact, I don't think Martin is even close to the player Faulk was. Simply put, Faulk is the greatest receiving RB of ALL TIME. Don't believe me, take a look at his stats and also listen to some of the other NFL greats talk about it. He was frequently lined up in the slot and sent down the field on post and fly patterns. Name another back that did this. He was much faster, shiftier and had better vision than Martin. He was a matchup NIGHTMARE for defenses out of the backfield. He was also just about as durable (until the tail end of his career). Faulk is a Top-5 all-time back. Martin is a Top-50 all time back. 2,000 all-purpose yards for four CONSECUTIVE seasons...'nuff said. Name another back in NFL history that has accomplished that. Wanna see what Faulk was about in a nutshell? Check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dulM2B7yp5I Kurt Warner himself said that Faulk was the key ingredient to the success of the Greatest Show on Turf. His comments can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PioZiJyF9I Sorry, but Faulk is in the Jim Brown, Gayle Sayers, Walter Payton, OJ, Barry Sanders and Emmitt Smith stratosphere. Martin is in the Thurman Thomas, Roger Craig, Tony Dorsett, Mercury Morris realm of running backs.
Do people really believe he's going to be overlooked because he's a Jet? What is with the inferiority complex? If he doesn't get in it won't be because he was overlooked or discredited because he was a Jet but it will be because he is going in against a pretty tough class. The whole "he's not going to get in because he's a Jet" thing is such bullshit. Anyway, I think that Martin does make the Hall in his first year with Faulk, Sanders, Roaf and one guy from the 2010 class (maybe Shannon Sharpe but I can't decide right now). I think Bettis and not Martin will be the one who is overlooked next year and pushed into 2011.
The last group includes the guys that could get in but haven't earned it yet. I am sure I missed several guys that belong in that group. Someone please explain to me how Chris Carter didn't get in on the first ballot.
I hope me makes it first time. Whenever he does make it, I'm going to Canton for the ceremony. Martin is my favorite all-time football player.
