The Buffalo Bills had nine former players listed as nominees for the Class of 2019 for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Unfortunately none of them made the cut from 102 to 25, per the announcement last night.
Super Bowl-era players C Kent Hull, LB Cornelius Bennett, LB Darryl Talley, and ST Steve Tasker were joined by more recent players FB Larry Centers, LB Takeo Spikes, LB London Fletcher, LB Chris Spielman, and FS Troy Vincent. Marty Schottenheimer, a player for the AFL-era Bills, was nominated as a coach.
Tasker is the only member of the group to previously make the cut as a semifinalist. He was one of the last men standing in 2004, 2008, 2009 & 2010 but his momentum seems to have waned with the influx of receivers from the 1990s and 2000s.
There are two former Bills on the list, and one who is a likely shoo-in for selection this year in his first year of eligibility. All-time great safety Ed Reed, who spent one season on the coaching staff of Rex Ryan when he was Buffalo’s head coach, seems like a lock for induction.
The other, Tom Flores, was nominated as a coach but played for the Bills during the 1960s, mainly as the backup to quarterback Jack Kemp.
Here are the semifinalists:
- Steve Atwater, S – 1989-1998 Denver Broncos, 1999 New York Jets
- Champ Bailey, CB – 1999-2003 Washington Redskins, 2004-2013 Denver Broncos
- Ronde Barber, CB/S – 1997-2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Tony Boselli, T – 1995-2001 Jacksonville Jaguars, 2002 Houston Texans (injured reserve)
- Isaac Bruce, WR – 1994-2007 Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams, 2008-09 San Francisco 49ers
- LeRoy Butler, S – 1990-2001 Green Bay Packers
- Don Coryell, Coach – 1973-77 St. Louis Cardinals, 1978-1986 San Diego Chargers
- Alan Faneca, G – 1998-2007 Pittsburgh Steelers, 2008-09 New York Jets, 2010 Arizona Cardinals
- Tom Flores, Coach – 1979-1987 Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders, 1992-94 Seattle Seahawks
- Tony Gonzalez, TE – 1997-2008 Kansas City Chiefs, 2009-2013 Atlanta Falcons
- Torry Holt, WR – 1999-2008 St. Louis Rams, 2009 Jacksonville Jaguars
- Steve Hutchinson, G – 2001-05 Seattle Seahawks, 2006-2011 Minnesota Vikings, 2012 Tennessee Titans
- Edgerrin James, RB – 1999-2005 Indianapolis Colts, 2006-08 Arizona Cardinals, 2009 Seattle Seahawks
- Jimmy Johnson, Coach – 1989-1993 Dallas Cowboys, 1996-99 Miami Dolphins
- Ty Law, CB – 1995-2004 New England Patriots, 2005, 2008 New York Jets, 2006-07 Kansas City Chiefs, 2009 Denver Broncos
- John Lynch, FS – 1993-2003 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2004-07 Denver Broncos
- Clay Matthews, LB – 1978-1993 Cleveland Browns, 1994-96 Atlanta Falcons
- Kevin Mawae, C/G – 1994-97 Seattle Seahawks, 1998-2005 New York Jets, 2006-09 Tennessee Titans
- Karl Mecklenburg, LB – 1983-1994 Denver Broncos
- Sam Mills, LB – 1986-1994 New Orleans Saints, 1995-97 Carolina Panthers
- Ed Reed, FS – 2002-2012 Baltimore Ravens, 2013 New York Jets, 2013 Houston Texans
- Richard Seymour, DE/DT – 2001-08 New England Patriots, 2009-2012 Oakland Raiders
- Zach Thomas, LB – 1996-2007 Miami Dolphins, 2008 Dallas Cowboys
- Hines Ward, WR – 1998-2011 Pittsburgh Steelers
- Darren Woodson, S – 1992-2003 Dallas Cowboys