Safety John Lynch
1993-2003 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2004-07 Denver Broncos
With Troy Polamalu making the final five, Lynch and Leroy Butler were more likely to get locked out. Polamalu was an epic player in every category, while Lynch and Butler weren’t quite at that level. Lynch is deserving over time, but this is his seventh year as a finalist — by far, the longest waiting period for anyone on the list — so he might have to wait until voter sentiment, and/or his success as the general manager of the 49ers, puts him over the top.
Selected by the Buccaneers in the third round of the 1993 draft, he was one of three players — Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks were the others — who turned that Tampa Bay defense from a relative joke to an all-time unit. And while his stats hold up well from a strong safety angle with 1,059 total tackles, 13 sacks, and 16 forced fumbles, there seems to be a perception that he was less than stellar in deeper coverage throughout his career, something his 26 interceptions don’t seem to have erased.