Is Justin Tucker a Future Hall-of-Famer?
Justin Tucker’s NFL-record 66-yard field goal to lead Baltimore past Detroit on Sunday set social media ablaze. But it sparked another thought — is the former Longhorn a future Pro Football Hall of Famer?
It’s an interesting debate because there are so few pure kickers in the Hall of Fame — and Tucker already has common denominators with all of them.
There are just two pure kickers in the Hall — Morten Andersen and Jan Stenerud. Two other players are in the Hall as kickers, but also played other positions — George Blanda (also a quarterback) and Lou Groza (also a tackle).
That exclusive club of pure kickers is likely to grow to three once former New England and Indianapolis kicker Adam Vinatieri is eligible. After all, Vinatieri is the league’s all-time leading scorer and has four Super Bowl rings — and two game-winning Super Bowl kicks for the Pats. By the way, Andersen is No. 2 all-time in points scored.
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Now, Tucker is only in his 10th NFL season, and frankly he could play a long time to come, if the endurance of the other Hall of Famers, and future Hall of Famers, is any indication. Blanda played the most seasons of any NFL player (26). Andersen played 25. Vinatieri played 24. Groza played 21. Stenerud played 18, but he was also one of the first players to serve only as a kicker in pro football history.
Longevity helps, but so do skins on the wall. And Tucker has plenty of them. He already has a Super Bowl ring, a combined six All-Pro selections (four first-team and two second-team), four Pro Bowl nods, and a unanimous selection to the NFL’s 2010s All-Decade team. He’s also the most accurate kicker in NFL history.
Groza was an NFL MVP, a member of the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 1950s, and the NFL’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team.
Blanda was a member of the All-Time AFL Team.
Stenerud has a Super Bowl ring and is a member of both the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team and the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.
Andersen is a member of both the NFL 1980s All-Decade Team and the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team.
Vinatieri is a member of both the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team and the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.
Tucker’s selection to the 2010s All-NFL Team seems crucial and one of those key common denominators with other kickers. So does the fact that he could play another 10 years and, perhaps, be named to the All-NFL Decade team of the 2020s, too.
He certainly has the capability. With the NFL’s record for longest made field goal in tow, he is building a resume that may be hard for Hall of Fame voters to ignore, when the time comes to consider it, of course.
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You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
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