Curtis Martin, fourth on the NFL all-time rushing list with more than 14,000 yards, was among six players voted into the American Football Hall of Fame on Saturday while some big names were snubbed.
Defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy, offensive tackle Willie Roaf, defensive end Chris Doleman, centre Dermontti Dawson and cornerback Jack Butler – a seniors category nominee – were also selected to the US sport shrine.
On the eve of Sunday’s Super Bowl 46 championship showdown between the New England Patriots and New York Giants, the Hall of Fame selection committee gathered to pick 2012 inductees from among 17 retired NFL legend finalists.
Among those who were denied a place among the all-time gridiron elites were coach Bill Parcells, receivers Cris Carter and Andre Reed, running back Jerome Bettis and defender Charles Haley, the only five-time Super Bowl champion.
New England coach Bill Belichick and New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin each worked as assistants under Parcells.
A candidate needed at least 80 per cent support from the 44-member panel to be enshrined. Induction ceremonies will be staged on August 4 at the Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
Martin recounted his rise from a troubled youth in Pittsburgh, spent fearing he or his family would become victims of violence.
“Football was something I did so I didn’t wind up dead or in jail,” Martin said. “For it to turn out this way, it’s so humbling. It just shows if you stick to it and don’t give up, how life can turn around.”
The panel eliminated Bettis, receiver Tim Brown, lineman Will Shields, linebacker Kevin Greene and former San Francisco 49ers owner Ed DeBartolo Jnr in a first round of voting that trimmed the candidate list to 12.
From there, the committee voted down Parcells, Carter, Reed, Haley, defensive back Aeneas Williams and 1950s guard Dick Stanfel, leaving the final enshrinees.
Doleman made 150 career sacks, fourth in NFL history at the time of his retirement, in a 15-season career with Minnesota, Atlanta and San Francisco.
Butler ranked second in NFL career interceptions when he retired in 1959 after nine seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the same team for which Dawson blocked for 13 seasons before retiring in 2000.
Kennedy spent 13 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks before retiring in 2000 while Roaf played 13 NFL seasons, nine with New Orleans and four more at Kansas City before retiring in 2005.
