Well, it’s been a while hasn’t it. There’s a lot of stuff to
talk about, but we’ll get to those items when the time is right. There’s an enshrinement
ceremony to talk about and some legends that deserve this blog’s recognition.
Willie Roaf
The Player: What can I say about Willie
Roaf? He was one of the most dominating offensive tackles in the NFL for thirteen
years. He would be recognized as such more widely if he didn’t spend most of
that time on the perpetual doormat that was the 90s New Orleans Saints. His
true greatness as a dominating one-on-one blocker, in both the running and
passing game, was on full display and more widely recognized when he went to
Kansas City for the final four years of his career, and paved the way for one
of the best offenses in the early 2000s. He went to 11 Pro Bowls and was named
an All-Pro 7 times. All-Decade in both the 90s and 2000s, Roaf is one of the
most underrated of the great offensive tackles in this game’s history.
The Speech: Willie is so big he has to
lean down to the mic. He’s clearly nervous and not used to speaking in front of
a lot of people, stuttering quite a bit. He is somewhat going backwards,
thanking his family before going through teammates and coaches. Very
interesting fact dropped that he played at the same high school as legendary
receiver Don Hutson. Other than that, the speech was very by the numbers.
Jack Butler
The Player: The guy who younger fans have
forgotten, Jack Butler in the personification of a player who’s excellence was
overshadowed by his team’s mediocrity. The Steelers of the 50s were known for
two things, a tough defense and a hopelessly bad record. I’m very certain, that
their inability to have sustained success in the regular season or any form of
success in the post season is what kept Butler out of the Hall of Fame until
recently. Butler intercepted 52 passes in 103 games. That’s a pick every two
games. That’s enough to lead the NFL during his career between 1951 and 1959.
He retired the second leading interceptor in NFL history. Named to four Pro
Bowls and three All-NFL teams as well as the All-Decade team of the 50s, Butler
has finally taken his place among the greatest defensive backs in the history
of the game.
The Speech: Jack is incredibly lucid for
a man of his age and very well spoken. His speech was short and sweet,
addressing who he wanted to thank without going through all the names or
sharing stories. He couldn’t work the crowd, asking cheering Steelers fans to stop
so he could do his speech, though he did work in a bit of humor at the end.
Truly, an old school style speech.
Chris Doleman
The Player: While originally being
drafted as a linebacker, Chris Doleman became the model of the modern
undersized defensive end. Doleman played with a lot of energy and was able to
beat tackles to the edges with best of his generation. He finished his career
with 150.5 sacks, good for fourth all-time at the time of his retirement. He never
won a Super Bowl which often is a something that hurts Hall of Fame cases,
though he made the Pro Bowl with all three teams he played for, eight total Pro
Bowl appearance, made First Team All-Pro three times and was named to the
All-Decade team of the 90s. He was also known as one of the best as forcing
fumbles during his time, knocking the ball loose 44 times over his fifteen year
career. His talent was often
unrecognized, but when it mattered most, he was finally acknowledged as one of
the game’s best.
The Speech: Chris is perhaps the first
person I can think of, who thanked a fantasy football league and his sponsors,
though not the first to thank god. Thanking god tends to be a running theme in
these speeches. This is probably the most cookie cutter of speeches, going through
the whole thing as his life story. But that’s also what makes it great to
listen to. I’ve also never heard someone go on so long about his attorney. But
still, I liked this speech.
Cortez Kennedy
The Player: Playing in the middle of the
defensive line, it’s often hard to get recognition. It’s even harder when you’re
team stinks. But Cortez Kennedy’s dominance on the football field was so great,
that no one could deny it. In 1992, while playing for a 2-14 Seattle Seahawks
team, Kennedy won the NFL’s defensive player of the year award while recording
14 sacks, an extremely high amount for a defensive tackle. He played his entire
career in Seattle, which until recently was like playing your entire career in
Alaska, no one outside your market recognizes you. Well, like Steve Largent
before him, Kennedy made fans sit up and notice as he was almost unblockable,
in spite of being double and triple teamed most games. He was named to eight
Pro Bowls and was a five time First-Team All-Pro. Another member from the
All-Decade team of the 90s, Kennedy was simply dominant and would have been in
on the first or second ballot if he played in a bigger market or won a Super
Bowl.
The Speech: Cortez, while stuttering a
bit, is doing a good job mixing in in stories and humor. Cortez worked in a lot
of those stories and his humor. While he has some trouble speaking clearly, he
really has a lot of the charisma and charm that people associate with the Deep
South. He’s going long, but he acknowledges it with a nice joke to the people
off stage. Good speech, lots of stories and humor that worked out, even if it
was a bit meandering at times.
Dermontti Dawson
The Player: It’s rare that any team can
replace one of the all-time best players at their position with a player of
equal or greater caliber. Pittsburgh had the good fortune to do that with their
center position. The year before Hall of Famer Mike Webster left the Steelers,
Dermontti Dawson was drafted. His sophomore season, he stepped in for Webster
and never looked back. He became one of the best Centers in the history of the
game and revolutionized the position as perhaps the first center that pulled on
running plays. Before Dawson, Centers were considered too big and bulky to keep
up with outside lead blocks. But he wasn’t that. Not by any stretch of the imagination.
He lead the offensive line of one of the best running teams in the 90s and was
regularly recognized as such, earning seven Pro Bowl invitations and six
All-Pro recognitions. Not a bad way to follow up on a legend huh?
The Speech: Another speech starting with
thanking Jesus. Got to admit, it feels like the first time anyone has ever
actually thanked their parents for giving them life. Dermontti’s son is very
enthusiastic and fired up. Dermontti is the first one to try to use this stage
to send a message, which he’s working into his story. I really like how he’s giving props to his predecessor
and fellow Hall of Fame center Mike Webster; it shows a lot of class. This was
definitely a solid speech.
Curtis Martin
The Player: I’m not sure what exactly I
need to say here. Curtis Martin finished his career as the fourth all-time
leading rusher, was only the second running back in history (the first being
Barry Sanders) to rush for one-thousand yards in the first ten years of his
career and was the oldest player to ever lead the league in rushing when he ran
for 1697 yards in 2004 at the age of 31. With all of that on the table, is it
any wonder he’s here? Oh, and he was the offensive Rookie of the Year in 1995
and attended five Pro Bowls. He was never flashy, only effective, which
combined with the lack of a Super Bowl win, probably is the reason he’s often
over-looked as being one of the best running backs in the history of the NFL. There’s
no doubt, he earned this honor.
The Speech: Early on, this looks like a
great speech. He freely admits to his doubts about playing football and how he
connected to the game in unusual ways. Great story about all of the events of
the weekend and dear god the stories about his family life. While his speech
isn’t structured in any traditional way, his stories and the emotion with which
these stories are being delivered, I can’t help but be carried along. This is
most definitely among my favorite all time induction speeches.
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