2026 PFHOF Finalists

Yesterday, the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced this year's Modern-Era finalists. I already wrote about the five Senior, Coach, and Contributor finalists.

I profiled all 26 Modern semifinalists a month ago (Offense, D/ST), and in all candor, I'm surprised how accurate my predictions were.

Quarterback

Finalists: Drew Brees, Eli Manning

These were pretty obvious. Improbably, Philip Rivers took his name out of the running by resuming his playing career. I think Brees gets elected and Manning keeps waiting.

Running Back

Finalist: Frank Gore

It would have been a huge upset if Gore, 3rd all-time in rushing yards, didn't advance as a finalist. My guess is that he gets elected on the first ballot, though I'm less confident than I am about Brees.

Wide Receiver

Finalists: Larry Fitzgerald, Torry Holt, Reggie Wayne

Fitzgerald is a lock, and Holt and Wayne are now 7-time finalists. Steve Smith, who was a finalist last year, didn't make it this time.

While it's rare for players to go backwards in their HOF support, it's not surprising in this case. What would be surprising is if four of the 15 finalists were wide receivers. The voters tend to compare players to [1] their teammates, and [2] other players at the same position. Smith is not a realistic candidate for enshrinement until at least two, and probably all three, of this year's finalists are in Canton.

Fitzgerald is obviously getting in right away. My guess is that Holt goes in before Wayne, but I don't think this is the year for either of them.

Tight End

Finalist: Jason Witten

Of all the first-year eligible semifinalists (Brees, Gore, Fitzgerald, and Witten, not including the no-longer-eligible Rivers), Witten is the one I wasn't certain would be a first-year finalist. Here's what I wrote last month:

He made 11 Pro Bowls, which is pretty much automatic HOF, and he has the 3rd-most receiving yards of any TE . . . I doubt he'll get elected on the first ballot, but I don't think he'll have a long wait.

Offensive Line

Finalists: Willie Anderson, Jahri Evans, Marshal Yanda

Anderson, Evans, and Yanda were finalists last year, as well. I think they'll all get elected eventually, though I doubt this is the year for any of them. Having so many strong first-year nominees doesn't leave a lot of room for others to move up.

I might guess that Anderson will be the first one enshrined.

Defensive Line

Finalist: Kevin Williams

I think it's obvious that Jared Allen's candidacy was blocking Williams'. Allen and Williams were teammates with the Vikings for six seasons, 2008-13, and Allen was clearly the superior player. With Allen on the ballot, Williams wasn't the best eligible defensive lineman, or the best eligible Viking, and he clearly wasn't the best eligible D-lineman on his own team.

Allen finally got inducted last year, and now Williams, who had never even been a semifinalist, has leapt all the way to the finalist round. I think that's as far as he gets this year, but this is a really positive sign for him, and I believe he'll get a gold jacket at some point.

Linebacker

Finalists: Luke Kuechly, Terrell Suggs

Kuechly and Suggs both debuted on the HOF ballot last year, and both were finalists. Kuechly was one of the final seven players considered, and those guys usually make it within a year or two. I think Kuechly will be elected this year.

Suggs will get in down the line, but I'd be very surprised if he's in the class of 2026.

Defensive Back

Finalist: Darren Woodson

This is Darren Woodson's 11th year as a Hall of Fame semifinalist, by far the most of any current nominee, and his 4th straight year as a finalist. He's made some progress with the voters, but with the first-year candidacies of Brees, Gore, Fitzgerald, and Witten — another Cowboy, even though they only played one season together — I don't see him making the progress he needs to.

Special Teams

Finalist: Adam Vinatieri

Vinatieri was one of the final seven candidates in last year's balloting, his first year of eligibility. A maximum of five Modern candidates can be elected in a given year. If Brees, Fitzgerald, and Gore all get in, that will leave — at most — two more spots. I think Kuechly and Vinatieri, both in their second year of elgibility and both having reached the final seven last year, have the best chance. Willie Anderson and Torry Holt were the other players in last year's top seven, but I think fellow WR Fitzgerald hurts Torry's chances of election this year.

Going Backwards

Steve Smith and Fred Taylor were both finalists last year, and both stalled as semifinalists this time around. One the one hand, I think that's because there are so many strong first-year nominees — including Fitzgerald and Gore, who played the same positions as Smith and Taylor, respectively.

But it's also not a great sign. The voters select 15 Modern finalists each year, and some of those guys are basically just filling up the last few spots — they're never going to get in. I'm not saying Smith and Taylor will never be elected, though I'd be awfully surprised in Taylor's case, but when they joined the finalists for the first time last cycle, that doesn't seem to have indicated sustainable momentum.

Smith does not have a realistic chance of induction while Torry Holt and Reggie Wayne are still waiting. Those three played at basically the same time, and it seems clear that the voters see Holt and Wayne as superior.

I don't think Taylor's path is blocked by other nominees at his position so much as it is by a relatively thin résumé. He only made one Pro Bowl, and he was never first-team All-Pro. He never led the league in a major statistic, and while he has the most career rushing yardage of any eligible player besides Gore, he's 18th all-time, which is certainly enough to be worthy of consideration, but isn't a compelling number to overwhelm the voters.

Curiously, the same thing that would help Steve Smith — the elections of Holt and Wayne — could hurt Taylor, if that opens a path for his Jaguars teammate Jimmy Smith to become a finalist. That said, I don't think Jimmy Smith is ever going to be a finalist, and I don't think Taylor is getting in regardless. He was a very good player, but the Hall of Fame is a level beyond "very good."

Class of 2026 Predictions: Bill Belichick, Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Frank Gore, Robert Kraft, Luke Kuechly, Adam Vinatieri

I encourage you to check out the Offensive and Defensive semifinalist posts and the Senior, Coach, and Contributor finalist post if you haven't already; there's a lot more substance in those.

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