Cortez Kennedy got another huge step closer to induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, but was not among the final five players considered for the Class of 2010.
The former All-Pro defensive tackle did advance to the final 10 during the seven-hour process by the selection committee in South Florida. Last year, Kennedy also was among the 15 finalist, but did not make the next round.
“I’m not disappointed. Not at all,” Kennedy said upon hearing the news. “Getting to the final 10, that’s good. You look at all the names in there and you can just flip a coin.”
Good point. While only five players and two senior selections comprise the Class of 2010, the others eliminated on the cut from 10 to five – like Kennedy – have Hall of Fame credentials.
This year’s class includes John Randle, a defensive tackle who played his final three seasons with the Seahawks and led them in sacks in 2001 and 2002. But he already had fashioned most of his Hall of Fame career with the Minnesota Vikings before coming to Seattle and will enter the Hall as a Viking.
The 2010 group also features two players who were considered slam-dunk selections in their first year of eligibility – wide receiver Jerry Rice, who caught 25 passes for the Seahawks in 2004 after having already put up Hall of Fame numbers during his years with the San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders; and running back Emmitt Smith, who became the NFL’s all-time leading rusher in a 2002 game against the Seahawks while playing for the Dallas Cowboys.
The rest of the class includes former Washington Redskins offensive lineman Russ Grimm, former New Orleans Saints linebacker Rickey Jackson and the two senior selections – former Denver Broncos running back Floyd Little, who used to own a car dealership in the Seattle area; and former defensive back Dick LeBeau.
Jackson is the first Saint to be elected to the Hall of Fame, which seems fitting since the Saints will play the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV on Sunday.
During the selection process, defensive end Charles Haley, running back Roger Craig, wide receivers Cris Carter and Tim Brown and coach Don Coryell were eliminated on the first ballot. Also advancing to the final 10, but not five, with Kennedy were defensive end Richard Dent, center Dermontti Dawson, wide receiver Andre Reed and tight end Shannon Sharpe.
The players who reached the final five still needed to get 80 percent approval from the selection committee to make the Hall. The senior members are selected in a separate balloting process.
Kennedy will make another run at the Hall next year, and won’t have to worry about Rice, Smith and Randle blocking his path.
“Like I said, I’m not disappointed,” Kennedy offered. “How can I be? It’s an honor, and humbling, just to be included in the final 10.”
