5 day forecast
Bettis, Dawson among Steelers nominated for NFL Hall of Fame
Share with others:
Halfback Jerome Bettis joins his former center Dermontti Dawson to headline a handful of Steelers nominated for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2011.
Bettis is among a trio of star running backs eligible for induction for the first time. The others are Marshall Faulk and Curtis Martin.
Dawson was among the finalists for the Hall of Fame last year, making it to the final 10.
Other former Steelers on the list are safety Donnie Shell, linebacker Kevin Greene, kicker Gary Anderson, coach Buddy Parker, defensive coordinator Bud Carson, player personnel head Art Rooney Jr. and scout Bill Nunn.
The 113 modern-era nominees will be whittled to 25 semifinalists in November and then 15 finalists. They will join two seniors nominees, former Washington Redskins linebacker Chris Hanburger and former Los Angeles Rams linebacker Les Richter, to be eligible for the next Hall of Fame Class, which will be chosen Feb. 5.
The nominees:
Running backs -- Jerome Bettis, Marshall Faulk, Curtis Martin
Wide receiver -- Jimmy Smith
Offensive lineman -- Willie Roaf (T)
Cornerback -- Deion Sanders (also KR/PR)
Coach -- Dick Vermeil
Additional nominees:
Quarterbacks -- Ken Anderson, Jim Plunkett, Phil Simms, Doug Williams
Running backs -- Ottis Anderson, Larry Centers, *Roger Craig, Terrell Davis, Eddie George, Brian Mitchell (also KR/PR), Gerald Riggs, Herschel Walker, Ricky Watters
Wide receivers -- *-Tim Brown, *-Cris Carter, Gary Clark, Henry Ellard, Herman Moore, Stanley Morgan, Mike Quick, *Andre Reed, J.T. Smith
Tight ends -- Mark Bavaro, Todd Christensen, Ben Coates, Russ Francis, Brent Jones, *-Shannon Sharpe, Frank Wycheck
Offensive linemen -- Bruce Armstrong (T), Tony Boselli (T), Lomas Brown (T), Jim Covert (T), *-Dermontti Dawson (C), Jay Hilgenberg (C), Chris Hinton (G/T), Kent Hull (C), Joe Jacoby (T), Mike Kenn (T), Jim Lachey(T), Steve Wisniewski (G)
Defensive linemen -- Al "Bubba" Baker (DE), Dave Butz (DE/DT), Ray Childress (DT/DE), *-Richard Dent (DE), Chris Doleman (DE/LB), *-Charles Haley (DE/LB), Ed "Too Tall" Jones (DE), *-Cortez Kennedy (DT), Joe Klecko (DE/DT/NT), Dexter Manley (DE), Charles Mann (DE), Fred Smerlas (NT)
Linebackers -- Cornelius Bennett, Kevin Greene (also DE), Ken Harvey, Clay Matthews, Karl Mecklenburg, Sam Mills, Darryl Talley
Defensive backs -- Eric Allen (CB), Steve Atwater (S), Bill Bates (S/ST), Joey Browner (S), LeRoy Butler (S), Kenny Easley (S), Lester Hayes (CB), Albert Lewis (CB), Frank Minnifield (CB), Donnie Shell (S), Aeneas Williams (CB/S), Darren Woodson (S), Louis Wright (CB)
Kickers/punters -- Gary Anderson (K), Ray Guy (P), Nick Lowery (K), Reggie Roby (P)
Special teams -- Steve Tasker (ST/WR)
Coaches -- Bud Carson, *Don Coryell, Tom Flores, Jimmy Johnson, Chuck Knox, Buddy Parker, Dan Reeves, Clark Shaughnessy
Contributors -- K.S. "Bud" Adams, Jr., Bobby Beathard, Leo Carlin, Jack Kent Cooke, Otho Davis, Edward DeBartolo, Jr., Ron Gibbs, Ole Haugsrud, Frank "Bucko" Kilroy, Art McNally, Art Modell, Bill Nunn, Joe Robbie, Art Rooney, Jr., Carroll Rosenbloom, Ed Sabol, Steve Sabol, Paul Tagliabue, Ron Wolf, George Young
*-On 2010 finalists list.
First Published September 13, 2010 8:30 am
