The National Football league announced the finalists for the Hall of Fame class of 2018. Among them, two former Patriots. Cornerback Ty Law and wide receiver Randy Moss were among the 15 former players selected. Moss is in his first year of eligibility. Ty Law was a finalist last year. The final cutdown will occur the day before the Super Bowl before an 80 percent majority will determine whether or not they get enshrined.
Law was drafted by the Patriots in 1995 and spent 10 seasons with the team. In 141 regular season games as a Patriot, Law had 539 tackles, 36 interceptions, and six touchdowns. In the playoffs with the Patriots, Law was as good as it gets. Law played in 12 playoff games with the team, recording 67 tackles and four interceptions. His interception of Kurt Warner in Super Bowl XXXVI was returned for a touchdown and sparked one of the greatest upsets in Super Bowl history. In 2003, Law intercepted co-MVP, Peyton Manning three times en route to holding the high powered Colts to just three points in the AFC Championship game. All in all, he played in four Super Bowls with the Patriots, winning three.
| Game | Game | Def | Def | Def | Def | Fumb | Fumb | Sack | Sack | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age | Tm | Pos | No. | G | GS | Int | Yds | TD | PD | FF | FR | Sk | Tkl |
| Care | Care | 203 | 189 | 53 | 828 | 7 | 88 | 7 | 5 | 5.0 | 707 | |||
| 10 y | 10 y | NWE | 141 | 133 | 36 | 583 | 6 | 45 | 3 | 4 | 4.0 | 539 | ||
| 2 yr | 2 yr | KAN | 32 | 32 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 1.0 | 100 | ||
| 2 yr | 2 yr | NYJ | 23 | 22 | 10 | 195 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 59 | |||
| 1 yr | 1 yr | DEN | 7 | 2 | 1 | 37 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Moss had a much shorter stint in New England. Drafted in 1998 by the Vikings, Moss landed with Patriots after a brief stop in Oakland. Moss looked like he was torpedoing his promising career with the Raiders until a trade to the Patriots rejuvenated him. In his first year, Moss caught an NFL record, 23 touchdowns in 2007 as the Patriots became the first team to go 16-0 in the regular season. Moss caught what would be the game-winning touchdown in the closing minutes of Super Bowl XLII before the Giants drove down the field.
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With Matt Cassel under center in 2008, Moss caught just 11 touchdowns for 1,008 yards on 69 receptions. When Brady returned the following year, Moss once again led the league in touchdown receptions with 13. He hauled in 83 passes for 1,264 yards but the Patriots were bounced in the first round by the Baltimore Ravens. Moss caught just nine passes, three for touchdowns, in four games in 2010 before he was traded by the Patriots. He retired in 2012.
Moss has a stronger case for the Hall of Fame and should get in in year one. In 14 total seasons, Moss’ 15,292 career yards are good for fourth best all time. His 156 touchdowns are second behind only Jerry Rice among wide receivers. From the first moment he stepped on the field, he was one of the most dominant receivers ever to play the game. Even without a Super Bowl win, Moss should be a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
| Game | Game | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age | Tm | G | GS | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Y/R | TD | Lng | R/G | Y/G |
| Care | Care | 218 | 193 | 1741 | 982 | 15292 | 15.6 | 156 | 82 | 4.5 | 70.1 | |
| 8 yr | 8 yr | MIN | 113 | 108 | 1012 | 587 | 9316 | 15.9 | 92 | 82 | 5.2 | 82.4 |
| 4 yr | 4 yr | NWE | 52 | 51 | 444 | 259 | 3904 | 15.1 | 50 | 76 | 5.0 | 75.1 |
| 2 yr | 2 yr | OAK | 29 | 28 | 219 | 102 | 1558 | 15.3 | 11 | 79 | 3.5 | 53.7 |
| 1 yr | 1 yr | SFO | 16 | 2 | 50 | 28 | 434 | 15.5 | 3 | 55 | 1.8 | 27.1 |
| 1 yr | 1 yr | TEN | 8 | 4 | 16 | 6 | 80 | 13.3 | 0 | 26 | 0.8 | 10.0 |
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Law, on the other hand, may not get in this year. With just five potential inductees, Law may be on the fringe with the likes of Ray Lewis, Terrell Owens, Steve Hutchinson, and Moss on the ballot as well. With that said, he certainly deserves the nod at some point. He will likely be the first and possibly the only member of the early Patriots dynasty (outside of Tom Brady) to get elected to the Hall.
Who is more likely to be elected into the Hall of Fame this summer? #NFL #Patriots #FPC @FPC_NFL
— Full Press Patriots (@FPC_Patriots) January 3, 2018
– Ian Glendon is the Editor-In-Chief of Full Press Coverage and the AFC East Division Editor. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @iglen31 Follow @FPC_Patriots and Facebook.
