Assorted Sunday Notes

Rafael:

My point with the HOF and the Cowboys bias is that it is so blatantly obvious that any self respecting Cowboys fan should ignore the so-called HOF in the same way they have shunned our great players. The fact that ESPN’s ‘Outside The Lines’ show with Jeremy Schaap would spend an entire episode debating the topic Thursday night says a lot more about it than only a lackluster Super Bowl matchup this week. I won’t recap what I saw on that show, other than to say that the only person on there (including Schaap) who claims there isn’t a bias was a HOF elector from a Philadelphia newspaper. Enough said.

One thing I have yet to ever hear mentioned anywhere is the location of the HOF’s proximity to places like Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago, Baltimore, Philly, etc. and the large number of players from these cities’ teams that are in the HOF, fairly or unfairly. Let’s face it, the HOF is also about making money from tourism & trade and Dallas is a long ride from Canton, literally and figuratively. What would all those NW Ohio people think when they are looking at too many players with Stars on their helmets? That might have something to do with why the NFL chose that location, more tourism from nearby metro areas? I don’t know the history, just guessing.

I’d like to see a Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame near the new stadium with a statue of Tom Landry right out front and the building shaped like a big star if you saw it from above. I have heard us accused by partisans of other teams of being arrogant, well, maybe we actually have a REASON to be. Let’s see how many other NFL teams can fill up a museum full of relics from such a storied past and get fans from around the world to come see it all. Let’s see how many of the rest of them have enough players that even deserve to get a bust for a franchise Hall of Fame without it devolving into comedy. I know the 5 Super Bowl trophies are proof enough of this franchise’s place in NFL history, no matter what those elitists in Canton say. Put the Super Bowl trophies all where they belong, with the busts of the players who brought them, amongst people who will appreciate it.

Better yet idea…get Gatorade, Reebok, Nike, et al to bid on being able to have name rights to build the Cowboys Hall of Fame. Call it the Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame Sponsored by ……… Kind of like how Jerry did with Nike at Texas Stadium. That would really drive the NFL nuts.

Actually JJ wants to build a Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame in the complex of the new stadium in Arlington, and you know something, if I ever go to a Hall of Fame, I’ll go to the one right next to the stadium, not to the place in which I know my team isn’t shown love.

Those are my 2 cents in a subject that boils my blood and that’s why I hadn’t writen.

Sterling,

There’s nothing to stop Jerry from doing this. I remember when he first floated the idea in the mid ’90s. There was a collective howl from the mediots (remember this was concurrent with his lawsuit with the NFL over merchandising) that he was disrespecting the Hall of Fame, yada, yada, yada.

Four words, people: Packers Hall of Fame.

They’ve got one inside Lambeau. And you never hear a peep about it. How it’s selfish or disrespectful of the Hall. Oh, no, it’s holy ground. And truly it is. (I must admit in an aside that I love the Boston Globe’s Bob Ryan’s take; he visited Lambeau and dubbed it "the greatest high school stadium in America). But why should it be the ONLY such site? Why not a Bears Hall at Soldier Field or a Giants one or a Browns one or, a Cowboys one?

Seriously, Jerry should just do it and announce it once the thing is 95% completed. Let the idiots scream. You and I and every other Cowboys fan will go.

So, does Michael Irvin make it next year? I think so, but I can’t be sure. There are no Reggie White’s or Troy Aikman’s coming up next year. But, Clay Matthews will get a lot of consideration (and should make it on his first try), there will be two more candidates from the Seniors Committee, and there is that huge backlog, including people like Thurman Thomas, Derrick Thomas, Bob Kuechenberg, Gary Zimmerman, Randy Gradishar, Art Monk, Andre Reed, etc, etc, etc.

Rayfield is finally in. Michael’s and Emmitt’s inductions are inevitable. If Drew Pearson and Cliff Harris also made it in, wouldn’t that take care of the most glaring omissions? We still wouldn’t have as many representatives as the Cards, but hey.

Great for Troy and Rayfield. I am beginning to lose interest in the PFHOF altogether. I look at it like the Acadmy Awards more or less. What diference does it really make. The movie is either worth the price of admission, or the price of the CD, or it isn’t. The Cowboys either win or they lose. They’re SB Champions or they’re not. So how important can an x-Cowboy’s selection to the PFHOF be for a fan. I thank Troy and Rayfield, and the other Cowboy PFHOFamers for their efforts at winning and for those great championship years. I also thank all of their team mates too. Other than that I can’t see an added value at being in the HOF.

MLF,
Excellent comparison between the HOF and
the AA awards both have gotten very,very “political” over these last few decades.

As a side note to the decline of the game under the Taglibooo regieme did anyone see the part about how the NFL
switches the ball out after every play
which makes the balls harder to throw?
Nothing like sacrificing the game for
few extra bucks ……but i’ll bet Paul makes it into the HOF on the 1st
ballot.

cotton,

… If Drew Pearson and Cliff Harris also made it in, wouldn’t that take care of the most glaring omissions? …

Not quite! Any Hall of Fame that does not include Bob Hayes is a sham. Hayes single-handedly changed the way the game was played. I don’t care about his numbers. Teams eventually forged defenses that could slow him down. But, he was a pioneer and should be recognized for it.

Hopefully, the Seniors Committee will try again with Hayes, and maybe this time the electors will get it right. If I were on that committee, I would propose that Hayes be nominated every year until he gets voted in.