Five Former Ravens Move Closer to Hall of Fame

The chances of a former Baltimore Ravens player making the Pro Football Hall of Fame have just massively increased.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced that the list of potential members of the Class of 2026 is now down to 26 semifinalists. Baltimore has five former players still in the running for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Marshal Yanda, OL
Terrell Suggs, OLB
Steve Smith Jr., WR
Willie Anderson, OL
Earl Thomas, S

A total of 26 candidates in the Modern-Era Players category have reached the Semifinalist stage for possible election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026 presented by Visual Edge IT. https://t.co/nWSYaYL4nz pic.twitter.com/Wd1HQ3SOyz
— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) November 25, 2025

Former Ravens players move one step closer to immortality

Yanda was a life-long Raven after the team selected him in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. Of the 177 games he played, Yanda started 166 of them, playing mostly at right guard, but mixed in some left guard and right tackle in there.

It really took until Yanda's fifth season to hit his stride as a future Hall of Famer, but once he did, he was one of the best in the NFL. He was selected to eight Pro Bowls, was a member of the first-team All-Pro twice, and a member of the second-team All-Pro five times until his final season in 2019.

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs | Evan Habeeb-Imagn Images

Suggs was selected by the Ravens 10th overall in the 2001 NFL Draft and became the perfect partner at linebacker. After 16 seasons with the Ravens, Suggs became the franchise's all-time leader in sacks with 132.5. He also made seven Pro Bowls, won Defensive Rookie of the Year, one first-team All-Pro selection, and Defensive Player of the Year in 2011.

Smith only spent the final three seasons of his NFL career with the Ravens. He accumulated 2,534 yards and 14 touchdowns in 37 games with Baltimore. In his full career, Smith was a five-time Pro Bowler with the Carolina Panthers.

Thomas played one season with the Ravens in 2019, his final season in the NFL. He made the most of it with a Pro Bowl selection after racking up 49 tackles, six quarterback hits, two tackles for loss, two sacks, four pass deflections, two interceptions, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery in 15 games.

After playing the first 12 years with AFC North division rivals Cincinnati Bengals, Anderson played the final season of his NFL career with the Ravens in 2008. He started 11 of 14 games at right tackle for Baltimore, finishing eighth in the voting for Comeback Player of the Year.

Now the wait begins to see which of these five players will get the door-knock to hear their names called as members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

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