Pittsburgh Steelers legend Hines Ward has once again advanced in the Pro Football Hall of Fame process, becoming a semifinalist for the 10th consecutive year.
Unfortunately, C Maurkice Pouncey, OLB James Harrison, and K Gary Anderson failed to advance to the next round. The modern-era list of 128 originally started with eight former Steelers, and now it’s down to just one.
This most recent cut went from 52 nominees down to 26. The next step will be the full selection committee casting ballots to narrow the list down to 15 finalists.
The first-time eligible nominees to reach the semifinalist round are Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Frank Gore, Philip Rivers, and Jason Witten. Ward is one of five wide receivers at this stage, along with Fitzgerald, Torry Holt, Steve Smith Sr. and Reggie Wayne.
It’s rare that the selection committee chooses to induct multiple receivers in the same class. There have been one or zero receivers in each of the last four classes. And when they do induct multiple, it’s usually one modern-era and one from the seniors pool of candidates.
Calvin Johnson and Drew Pearson were both inducted in 2021, Isaac Bruce and Harold Carmichael in 2020, and Randy Moss and Terrell Owens in 2018. Those were the only times in history that multiple receivers made it in the same year.
Given that Fitzgerald is a first-time modern-era semifinalist, it’s going to be tough for Ward to get over the hump once again.
Selected in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft, Ward played his entire 14-season career in Pittsburgh. He won two Super Bowls with the team and caught 1,000 passes for 12,083 yards and 85 TDs. The MVP of Super Bowl XL, Ward was a Pro Bowler in four straight seasons from 2001-04, and a second-team All-Pro in three straight seasons from 2002-04.
His impact on the team went far beyond the box score. Few played as hard as Ward, and the league had to alter rules due to his knack for laying huge crackback blocks on defenders, which was perfectly legal at the time.
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