Rams greats Warner, Pace, Bruce, Holt among Hall semifinalists

By foxsports
Published

Brett Favre, Terrell Owens and Alan Faneca are semifinalists in their first year of eligibility.

The group of 25 semifinalists was announced Tuesday by the Canton, Ohio, shrine.

Other semifinalists, all of them previously eligible, include Warner, Pace, Bruce, Holt, Morten Andersen, Tony Boselli, Kevin Mawae, Tony Dungy, Marvin Harrison, John Lynch, Steve Atwater, Don Coryell, Roger Craig, Terrell Davis, Kevin Greene, Joe Jacoby, Edgerrin James, Jimmy Johnson, Mike Kenn, Ty Law, Karl Mecklenburg and Sam Mills.

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Already nominated by the seniors committee are Ken Stabler and Dick Stanfel. The 2016 contributor candidate is former 49ers owner Edward DeBartolo Jr.

Fifteen finalists will be announced in January. Voting will culminate Feb. 6, the night before the Super Bowl. While there is no set number for any class of enshrinees, the selection process bylaws provide that between four and eight new members will be selected.

Inductions will be in August.

Favre, of course, is the headliner. A three-time league MVP, he retired with 508 touchdown passes, 71,838 yards and 186 victories. He also temporarily retired twice late in his career, and finished up with Minnesota for two seasons following 16 in Green Bay and one with the Jets. He spent his rookie season as a backup in Atlanta before being dealt to the Packers, where he helped revitalize the franchise.

The polarizing Owens played for five franchises, making All-Pro five times. T.O. led the league in TD receptions three times, retiring with 153. He also was known for feuds with his quarterbacks, many of whom he felt didn't target him enough.

Faneca made six All-Pro teams at guard. He anchored Pittsburgh's offensive line for a decade, winning a Super Bowl. He also played two years for the Jets and one for Arizona.

Andersen is the career scoring leader who played 25 seasons with five teams and kicked 565 field goals. Warner led teams to three Super Bowls, quarterbacking the Rams to the NFL title in the 1999 season, and was a two-time league MVP.

Davis was one of seven 2,000-yard rushers (1998, when he took NFL MVP honors) and won two championships. Johnson coached two Super Bowl winners in Dallas, while Craig played for three championship teams in San Francisco.

Boselli and Mills are semifinalists for the first time, although they have been eligible for the hall in the past.

Finalists from 2015 who are again semifinalists are Andersen, Coryell, Dungy, Johnson, Davis, Greene, Harrison, Lynch, Pace and Warner.