Tag: Ring of Excellence

Family of Ken Stabler to receive Hall of Fame ring half time of Raiders home opener vs Steelers

We have a date for when Ken Stabler’s family will receive his Hall of Fame ring. Appropriately enough it will happen when the Raiders face the Steelers.

There were no Raiders legends among the new class of to take the stage at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton Ohio today to accept enshrinement, there is great news for the family of the greatest quarterback to ever don Silver & Black.

The family of Ken Stabler will soon receive the Hall of Fame ring they have long deserved.

For some back story, the Pro Football Hall of Fame has long given out their Ring of Excellence as part of induction along with the iconic yellow blazer. The caveat was those items were only given to *living* inductees.

While the rule never made a whole lot of sense, for those like the Stabler family, it was all the more frustrating and hurtful considering Ken should have been inducted long before, but was denied his rightful place until the Senior Committee voted him in, and only after he has passed away of cancer at the age of 69.

Recently the Pro Football Hall of Fame finally changed that rule, at least with regard to the Ring of Excellence, and made it retroactive. This means all family who were once denied the ring, will now receive them.

The family of Stabler’s long time receiver Cliff Branch — who they also strung along until after he had passed away to induct him — was the first to receive the Ring of Excellence. They received it at last year’s season finale.

And now, Ken’s daughter Kendra Stabler has revealed to me that she will be receiving the ring at the Raiders home opener on September 24.

“Mark Davis called me before the season ended last year to tell me the good news that the Hall changed their policy regarding posthumously inducted players getting a Hall of Fame ring,” said Kendra. “Mark Davis & Virginia Madden were instrumental in making this happen and the new President of the Hall of Fame, Jim Porter.”

Kendra also noted that the ceremony will happen “ironically against the Steelers”. I don’t think the opponent in this game is meant to be ironic so much as with an expressed purpose.

You see, last season, the Steelers held their 50th anniversary celebration of the Immaculate Reception during their game against the Raiders in Pittsburgh. Now, it appears the Raiders are returning the favor.

Stabler scored the go-ahead touchdown that put the Steelers within one completion of losing and it was only Franco Harris digging out the deflected pass that reversed their fate.

It was also Stabler who would ultimately lead the Raiders past the Steelers to a 24-7 AFC Championship win and go on to beat the Vikings and hoist the first Lombardi Trophy in franchise history and earn Stabler his only Super Bowl ring. The win over the Steelers meant so much to Al Davis, he had the 24-7 score engraved on the Raiders’ Super Bowl ring.

Families of Ken Stabler, Cliff Branch may finally soon receive Hall of Fame rings

Remember when the Hall of Fame added insult to injury by denying the families of Ken Stabler and Cliff Branch HoF rings? Well, they just changed their policy which means they could finally receive those rings.

There is no instance that more exemplifies why we love sports more than the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremonies. It’s the culmination of a life and career of excellence at the highest level of the sport.

In those instances, ideally, you see the player take the stage, unveil his bust, and then tell stories of his family and his teammates who helped him along the way and enriched his life to lead him to that moment.

Two Raiders greats were robbed of that by the Pro Football Hall of Fame, which waited so long to enshrine them that they had passed away before they could have their moment.

Ken Stabler and Cliff Branch made up two parts of a lethal Raiders aerial attack in the 70s including a Super Bowl win. Stabler was one of the most clutch quarterbacks in NFL history and Branch retired as the all-time leader in postseason receiving yards — a record that wasn’t broken until Jerry Rice did it.

And yet they couldn’t get in during their lifetimes.

Then to add insult to injury, the Pro Football Hall of Fame would deny their families a Gold Jacket and a Hall of Fame ring.

“No jacket, no ring,” said Kendra Stabler, daughter of Ken Stabler at the time. “My Dad deserves it, dead or alive! He gave so much to the game we all love.”

Former Raiders CEO Amy Trask had some strong words for the Hall of Fame as well.

“It’s stunningly thoughtless to families of those who may have compromised their health to play,” said Trask, calling it “petty” and “simply dumb” and asking that they “fix it, please.”

Well, it took seven years, but it appears the Pro Football Hall of Fame has, indeed, *finally* fixed it.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced today they have changed their policy, allowing the families of those who were enshrined posthumously to receive their Hall of Fame Ring of Excellence.

Along with the announcement, they named six Hall of Famers whose families will receive the ring during the half time ceremony of the Hall of Fame game this Thursday, August 3.

While Stabler and Branch are not among those who will receive the ring on Thursday, that there are additional Ring of Excellence ceremonies which are planned for other Hall of Famers with living family members, which would include Stabler and Branch.

So, it shouldn’t be long before the families of the two legends finally get the ring they should’ve had all along.