Predicting the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2013

The 17 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Classof 2013 are, as they say, all worthy. Of course, at least 10 of them will come away disappointed when the class is announced in New Orleans one day before Super Bowl XLVII.

  

Unlike the Baseball Hall of Fame, whose voting process allows for a class of none, the Pro Football Hall of Fame is guaranteed to induct between four and seven new members. There are several angles to follow this year, leading with the always-popular debate over Cris Carter (in his sixth year as a finalist). Others:

* Will former Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens owner Art Modell get a little extra love/sympathy from his vehement detractors now that he’s dead.

* Will the presence of three dominant offensive linemen on the ballot dilute the chances of all three getting in?

 * Will first-year eligibles Michael Strahan and Warren Sapp cancel each other out?

* Will one or both of the Seniors Committee nominees – Curley Culp and Dave Robinson – keep up a trend in which the voters continue to reward guys who couldn’t get elected the first time around?

Clearly, the Seniors Committee wields considerable authority. At least one Seniors nominee has been inducted each of the last 15 years. In the nine years since the committee has been nominating two candidates, they’ve gone 2-for-2 five times.

For the sake of predictions, I’ll stick with the trend – but I’ll say only one of the seniors gets in.

Here are my picks for the Class of 2013:

LARRY ALLEN: As dominant an offensive lineman as there has been, Allen deserves to be in Canton every bit as much as his Dallas Cowboy teammates Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin.

CURLEY CULP: Why does Culp get the nod here over fellow Seniors nominee Dave Robinson? The last Seniors candidate who failed to get elected was Jerry Kramer in 1997. While there is a passionate group still pushing for Kramer, the fact of the matter is that there might be more than enough Hall of Famers from those great 1960s Green Bay Packers teams. Thus, Robinson endures the same fate. Culp, meanwhile, helped the Kansas City Chiefs win Super Bowl IV and then became a stalwart for a Houston Oilers defense that played in back-to-back AFC title games.

CHARLES HALEY: A four-time finalist, momentum has been building for Haley, who has won more Super Bowls (5) than any other in NFL history.

JONATHAN OGDEN: The former Baltimore Ravens tackle is almost as much a sure thing as Larry Allen, which would make four offensive linemen elected in the last two years (joining Class of 2012’s Dermontti Dawson and Willie Roaf). That’s not too many… but it does kill the chances this year for fellow finalist Will Shields.

BILL PARCELLS: The difference for the Tuna in his fourth year as a finalist? The voters might finally be convinced that he is not going to unretire. And that paves the way to elect a coach who has taken two different teams to the Super Bowl and reached the playoffs with two others.

MICHAEL STRAHAN: Like it or not, let’s not forget that popularity does come into play when the 46 media members vote on this thing. And Strahan was a hell of a lot more popular with the media than Warren Sapp. Regardless of that angle, it may be unfair to compares these two players straight up, as we’re dealing with an interior defensive lineman (Sapp) vs. a defensive end (Strahan). Strahan is supposed to be the more productive pass rusher, and he was, but he was also a complete player.

There you have it. No Carter (or Tim Brown or Andre Reed). No Modell. Oh, and one more prediction: To capitalize on the inductions of Ogden, Parcells and Strahan, the 2013 Hall of Fame Game will feature the Ravens and Giants.