Tag: Steve Atwater

Broncos legend Steve Atwater voted into Pro Football Hall of Fame

Broncos safety Steve Atwater has been voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame!

Denver Broncos legend Steve Atwater was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.

Atwater is one of just two position players from the 1990s All-Decade Team who was not already in the Pro Football Hall of Fame before this year’s voting (the other is safety LeRoy Butler, who didn’t have as an accomplished career as Atwater).

During his 11-year career, Atwater totaled over 1,000 tackles, 24 interceptions and five sacks. Atwater was one of the hardest-hitting safeties of his era and he is perhaps best-known for his massive hit on former Chiefs running back Christian Okoye.

A two-time Super Bowl champion and eight-time Pro Bowler, Atwater is the eighth former Bronco to enter Canton, joining quarterback John Elway, running back Floyd Little, tight end Shannon Sharpe, offensive lineman Gary Zimmerman, running back Terrell Davis, cornerback Champ Bailey and late club owner Pat Bowlen.

Former defensive backs Willie Brown and Brian Dawkins are also in the Hall of Fame but they are best-known for their careers outside of Denver.

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Is it now or never for Steve Atwater to get into the Hall of Fame?

Former Denver Broncos safety Steve Atwater is one of 15 semi-finalists for the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. Will he get in?

Once again, former Denver Broncos safety Steve Atwater has been selected as a semi-finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

As part of celebrating the 100th year of the National Football League, the Hall of Fame decided to create a Centennial Class for this year only. This class will include 20 members, including five modern-era players. The semi-finalist list includes 15 players, one of which is Atwater.

If Atwater is ever going to gain entry to the Hall, the time is now.

As part of the Centennial Class, all of the coaches and contributors have already been selected. Atwater doesn’t have to worry about getting beat out by an owner or former league commissioner, for instance.

Instead, he just has to be one of the five players selected from this list:

Troy Polumalu

Edgerrin James

Bryant Young

Zach Thomas

Richard Seymour

John Lynch 

LeRoy Butler

Reggie Wayne

Torry Holt

Isaac Bruce

Sam Mills

Tony Boselli

Alan Faneca

Steve Hutchinson

That’s a good list, but the spots are wide open because there really is no “slam dunk” selection as there has been in year’s past.

You could easily make the argument for guys like Polamalu and Wayne, but Atwater’s numbers and career success can’t be denied.

One of the best safeties of his era, Atwater was selected to eight Pro Bowls. He was named a First-team All-Pro in 1991 and 1992. He registered over 1,100 tackles in his career with 24 interceptions.

But the reputation he created as a bone-rattling hitter was what set Atwater apart from most of the safeties of the 1990s.

You’ll notice that former Broncos safety John Lynch is also a semi-finalist, but I’m not making the case here for him. That’s not to slight Lynch in any way, but Atwater is more deserved of the honor.

Part of the Broncos’ back-to-back Super Bowl champion teams in 1997 and 1998, Atwater is one of the overall best defensive players in team history. But for a player that retired 20 years ago, his career is starting to be forgotten.

And that’s the concern.

Atwater should be in the Hall of Fame, but is his resume better than the guys on this list? Recently, Deion Sanders made the comment that too many players are gaining entry into the Hall of Fame.

Right or wrong, the committee is going to listen to a comment like that and perhaps make its criteria even more stringent.

If Atwater is going to get in after all this time, it has to be during a year where there aren’t multiple “main event” level entires. For instance, Peyton Manning, Calvin Johnson and Charles Woodson are all eligible in 2021.

Atwater won’t get in with that class.

We must also keep in mind that this committee has still yet to include Randy Gradishar even in a year where 10 senior players were inducted. Not to take anything away from guys like Harold Carmichael and Alex Karras, two senior members of the 2020 class, but Gradishar is someone you simply can’t credibly leave out.

But he has been left out and he is more deserving than almost anyone who is not already there, not just former Broncos.

This has to be the year for Atwater. If it’s not, it may be never.

 

Steve Atwater helped groom Broncos legend Terrell Davis

Broncos legend Steve Atwater helped Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Terrell Davis improve as a player when he arrived in Denver.

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Former Broncos safety Steve Atwater is among 15 modern-era finalists for the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. The class of 2020 will be announced on Saturday.

Atwater is best-known as a hard-hitting, play-making safety who was a key member of Denver’s defense from 1989-1998. Atwater also played a role in improving the team’s offense — he helped groom running back Terrell Davis.

“When I came to the Broncos as a rookie, I remember Steve helping me out,” Davis said in a recent interview with the team’s website. “In training camp, if he would see something that I was doing, or if I was tipping off the defense to a run, whether it was my stance, my alignment . . .

“[He would say], ‘I knew you guys were running this play because you were, instead of being over the gap, you were over the tackle.’ So he allowed me to do some self-evaluating and kind of get his perspective from defense.”

Davis is Denver’s all-time leader in rushing yards (7,607) and rushing touchdowns (60). He was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017. Atwater deserves to join Davis in Canton this year.

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Broncos legend Randy Gradishar snubbed by Hall of Fame

Broncos legend Randy Gradishar has been snubbed by the Pro Football Hall of Fame once again.

Denver Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar is not among 10 senior “Centennial Slate” candidates who were voted into the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class on Wednesday. The senior members will be part of a special expanded 20-member class celebrating the NFL’s 100 years.

Gradishar was named a finalist in December but was snubbed in the final voting process.

Gradishar was a key member of the Broncos’ defense from 1974–1983. During that time, Gradishar earned seven Pro Bowl nods and Defensive Player of the Year honors (1978). He helped Denver’s famous “Orange Crush” defense lead the Broncos to the Super Bowl in 1977 and is a member of the team’s Ring of Fame.

The NFL did not officially track tackles during Gradishar’s career but he is unofficially credited with 2,049 tackles and officially credited with 20 interceptions. He was a play-making linebacker and one of the best defenders in franchise history.

Former Broncos coach Dan Reeves was also a Centennial Slate finalist but the voters selected former Steelers coach Bill Cowher and former Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson over him. Denver also has two modern-era finalists in safeties Steve Atwater and John Lynch.

Atwater and Lynch are among 15 modern-era finalists who will learn their Hall of Fame fates on Feb. 1, the eve of Super Bowl LIV.

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Alan Faneca, Steve Atwater among Hall of Fame finalists with Jets ties

Alan Faneca and Steve Atwater are two Pro Football Hall of Fame finalists with ties to the Jets.

The New York Jets have a couple of Pro Football Hall of Fame finalists with ties to the franchise.

Both Alan Faneca and Steve Atwater were named Pro Football Hall of Fame finalists for the class of 2020. The Hall of Fame’s Selection Committee will have to elect five Modern-Era players who must receive 80% of the vote from the committee in order to be inducted.

The Jets signed Faneca to a five-year $40 million deal in 2008, which was the largest contract for an offensive lineman in NFL history at the time. Faneca made a huge impact in the trenches, as the Jets ran for over 2,000 yards and at least 20 touchdowns in both seasons he was there. However, New York cut Faneca in 2010 after it drafted Vladimir Ducasse.

Prior to his brief stint with the Jets, Faneca had his best years with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1998-2007.

As for Atwater, he was with the Jets in 1999 after spending 10 seasons in Denver. In his only season with the Jets, Atwater played in 12 games and had 36 total tackles, two pass defenses and one forced fumble.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2020 will be announced during the NFL Honors Show, the night before the Super Bowl. The class will officially be enshrined in Canton on Aug. 8th.

Former Broncos safeties Steve Atwater, John Lynch named Hall of Fame finalists

Former Broncos safeties John Lynch and Steve Atwater have been named modern-era finalists for the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.

Former Denver Broncos safeties Steve Atwater and John Lynch have been named finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the league announced Thursday. This marks the third time Atwater has been a finalist and the seventh time Lynch has been a finalist.

Atwater and Lynch are among 15 modern-era finalists.

The Broncos also have two Centennial Slate finalists this year — former linebacker Randy Gradishar (senior candidate) and former coach Dan Reeves (coaching candidate). The Hall of Fame will have an expanded class of 20 members this year to celebrate 100 years of the NFL.

The Hall of Fame’s selection committee will meet on the eve of Super Bowl LIV to select five modern-era players for the 2020 class. The 15 Centennial Slate enshrinees will be selected in early January.

The 2020 class will be enshrined in Canton, Ohio in August (modern-era coaches, players and contributors) and September (seniors).

Last year, former Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey and late owner Pat Bowlen were enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

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Ranking the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame finalists

Touchdown Wire ranks the 15 modern-era finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced 15 finalists for the Class of 2020 on Thursday night. All of them are worthy, but only five will make it this year.

I’ve been in the room as an alternate voter three times and it’s a fascinating process. The voters take their responsibility very seriously, as they should. They want it to be the Hall of Fame, not the Hall of Very Good.

As a veteran writer explained to me the first time I was in the room, anyone that made the finalist list deserved to get in – at some point. But only the best are to get in during a given year. The rest should wait until the right time and their time will come.

That veteran also told me to keep one question in mind when voting – could the history of the game be written without a player. It was all great advice and I always tried to keep those parameters in mind.

I’m not voting this year, but I’ll still keep that advice in mind as I rank this year’s finalists from No. 15 to No. 1. Here we go.

15. Richard Seymour, DL – 2001-08 New England Patriots, 2009-2012 Oakland Raiders

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Seymour split his career between defensive end and tackle. That works against him. His 57.5 career sacks aren’t nearly enough for the Hall of Fame.

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Broncos legend Randy Gradishar a finalist for 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class

Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar is among the finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Former Denver Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar is among 38 finalists for a special Centennial Slate 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. Former coach Dan Reeves (who coached in Denver from 1981-1992) is also a finalist.

Gradishar was a key member of the Broncos’ defense from 1974–1983. During that time, Gradishar earned seven Pro Bowl nods and Defensive Player of the Year honors (1978). He helped Denver’s famous “Orange Crush” defense lead the Broncos to the Super Bowl in 1977 and is a member of the team’s Ring of Fame.

The Hall of Fame’s selection committee has put together a list of eight coaches, 10 contributors and 20 senior finalists for next year’s class. Of those finalists, 15 members will be selected to be enshrined in Canton, Ohio.

In addition to those 15 members, five modern-era players will be part of the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. Safeties Steve Atwater and John Lynch are among the modern-era semifinalists. Earlier this year, late owner Pat Bowlen and cornerback Champ Bailey were part of 2019 class.

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Ex-Broncos safeties Steve Atwater and John Lynch named Hall of Fame semifinalists

Former Broncos safeties John Lynch and Steve Atwater have been named semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2020.

Former Denver Broncos safeties Steve Atwater and John Lynch have been named modern-era semifinalists for the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. There are 25 total semifinalists — that list will be trimmed down to 15 finalists in January.

This marks the ninth time Atwater has been named a semifinalist and the eighth time Lynch has been a semifinalist. The Pro Football Hall of Fame will announce a 20-person class of 2020 in February.

Atwater earned eight Pro Bowl nods during his time with the Broncos and helped the team win back-to-back Super Bowls in the late 1990s.

Lynch won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before going on to play the final four years of his career in Denver. Lynch made the Pro Bowl in each of his four seasons with the Broncos.

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