Dwight Freeney is a Pro Football Hall of Fame Finalist
The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced 15 finalists for the 2023 Hall of Fame class on Wednesday and former Syracuse star Dwight Freeney was among them. He was named a finalist in his first year of eligibility. That puts him one step closer to earning a gold jacket. Should he become a Hall of Famer, he would put Syracuse in a tie for fifth most Hall of Famers all time.
What is the process from this point? Here is more information on that via Colts.com.
The 49-person Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee will meet in the coming weeks to determine the 2023 Modern Era inductees, with the process whittling the group of 15 finalists down to 10 and then five. Once those final five finalists are chosen, the selection committee will vote yes or no on each player, with 80 percent of the vote needed to be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The Pro Football Hall of Fame Modern Era Class of 2023 will be unveiled during the NFL Honors award show at 9 p.m. ET on Feb. 9.
Freeney starred at Syracuse in college, setting numerous records and becoming one of the best pass rushers in the country. He was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the first round of the NFL Draft and for them from 2002 to 2012. Freeney racked up 125.5 sacks during his career, good for 26th all time. He was a three time First Team All-Pro, seven time Pro Bowler and a Super Bowl Champion. Freeney had double digit sacks in seven seasons and had at least four forced fumbles in eight seasons.
The complete list of 15 finalists is as follows:
- Jared Allen, DE – 2004-2007 Kansas City Chiefs, 2008-2013 Minnesota Vikings, 2014-2015 Chicago Bears, 2015 Carolina Panthers
- Willie Anderson, OT -- 1996-2007 Cincinnati Bengals, 2008 Baltimore Ravens
- Ronde Barber, DB – 1997-2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Dwight Freeney, DE -- 2002-2012 Indianapolis Colts, 2013-14 San Diego Chargers, 2015 Arizona Cardinals, 2016 Atlanta Falcons, 2017 Detroit Lions, 2017 Seattle Seahawks
- Devin Hester, PR/KR/WR -- 2006-2013 Chicago Bears, 2014-2015 Atlanta Falcons, 2016 Baltimore Ravens, 2016 Seattle Seahawks
- Torry Holt, WR -- 1999-2008 St. Louis Rams, 2009 Jacksonville Jaguars
- Andre Johnson, WR -- 2003-2014 Houston Texans, 2015 Indianapolis Colts, 2016 Tennessee Titans
- Albert Lewis, CB -- 1983-1993 Kansas City Chiefs, 1994-1998 Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders
- Darrelle Revis, CB -- 2007-2012/2015-16 New York Jets, 2013 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2014 New England Patriots, 2017 Kansas City Chiefs
- Joe Thomas, LT -- 2007-2017 Cleveland Browns
- Zach Thomas, LB -- 1996-2007 Miami Dolphins, 2008 Dallas Cowboys
- DeMarcus Ware, LB -- 2005-2013 Dallas Cowboys, 2014-2016 Denver Broncos
- Reggie Wayne, WR -- 2001-2014 Indianapolis Colts
- Patrick Willis, LB -- 2007-2014 San Francisco 49ers
- Darren Woodson, S -- 1992-2003 Dallas Cowboys
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