Ken Riley Inches Closer To Pro Football Hall Of Fame -

For the first time since Anthony Munoz was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1998 … and only the second time in their history … the Cincinnati Bengals are on the verge of adding a second bust to Canton.

That’s because Riley, a star cornerback who played 15 seasons with the Bengals, is one of three senior nominees chosen Tuesday for induction to the Hall’s Class of 2023. Dallas linebacker Chuck Howley and New York Jets’ defensive lineman Joe Klecko are the others.

The three were named by the Hall’s seniors committee from a list of 12 finalists that included four linebackers (Howley, Randy Gradishar, Tommy Nobis, and Maxie Baughan) and three defensive backs (Riley, Eddie Meador, and Everson Walls).

Curiously, Riley, Howley, and Klecko were not among the 20 finalists for the Hall’s Centennial Class of 2020. In fact, none was a Hall-of-Fame finalist, period, before this year.

Now let’s get something straight before going further: This doesn’t mean they’ve been elected. It simply means they will be proposed as candidates for the Class of 2023 when the Hall’s board of 49 selectors meets prior to Super Bowl LVI.

That said, Riley is expected to be elected. The reason: Interceptions. He had 65 in his career, tying him for fifth all-time among NFL defensive backs. The guy he’s tied with? It’s Charles Woodson, a first-ballot Hall of Famer in 2021.

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Then there’s this: The Cincinnati issue. In 54 years of existence, the Bengals have only one player in Canton who spent the bulk of his career with the franchise, and that’s Munoz. Granted, quarterback Ken Anderson was a two-time modern-era finalist in 1996 and 1998, but he didn’t make it. Neither did tackle Willie Anderson, a finalist for Canton this year.

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That annoys Cincinnati fans, and it should. Their team has more Super Bowl appearances (3) than Hall of Fame players (1).

At some point, Hall voters were going to wake up to another Bengal, and Riley is that candidate. Granted, there will be questions about why he wasn’t named to a single Pro Bowl while former teammate Lemar Parrish was chosen to eight, but Riley cleared that hurdle with Tuesday’s vote.

“Everyone from management to the guy at the farthest tailgate lot is breathing a sigh of relief,” said Geoff Hobson, Cincinnati’s Hall-of-Fame voter. “They’re so happy for the Riley family. We lost him two years ago, and people are happy for the family.”

Riley died in June 2020 of a heart attack.

Howley is a favorite for induction, too. For too many years, he’s been overlooked by Hall voters, yet he was a first-team All-Pro five times and the only player from a losing team to be named a Super Bowl MVP (Super Bowl V). He intercepted two passes in that game and followed with an interception and fumble recovery a year later as Dallas defeated Miami in Super Bowl VI, 24-3.

Howley’s son, Scott, called the news “fantastic” for his Dad.

Imagine, then, how Klecko must have felt when told of his selection. If there’s an upset here, he’s it. A three-time All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler, Klecko overcame more decorated defensive players like Baughan (seven-time All-Pro, nine-time Pro Bowler) and Gradishar (1978 Defensive Player of the Year, five-time All-Pro and seven-time Pro Bowler), as well as Miami guardBob Kuechenberg (two—time Super Bowl champion, three-time All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowler).

Nevertheless, Klecko was named to the Pro Bowl at three different positions (defensive tackle, nose tackle and defensive end)

“In my 13 seasons,” Munoz once said, “Joe is right there at the top of the defensive ends. There’s not another player who went to the Pro Bowl at three different positions. You take a defensive end and put him at nose tackle, and he’s just as good there? That’s a great player. We need to get Joe into the Hall of Fame.”

He may get his wish.