One Thing to Know About Each Member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame 2026 Class

I'm Matt Verteram of Sports Illustrated.

And here's one thing you need to know about each of the five Hall of Fame enshrinees.

Drew Brees, the headliner of the classic Super Bowl-winning quarterback with the New Orleans Saints.

Brees is number 2 all-time, only behind Tom Brady in passing yardage and passing touchdowns.

Over 80,000 passing yards in his career.

5 times Brees threw for more than 5000 yards in a season, something no quarterback has even approached.

Brees came into the Saints when they were a downtrodden franchise.

A franchise that when he arrived, had never even reached an NFC title game.

And by 009, Brees had them starting the season 13-0 and then getting to and winning Super Bowl 44, beating the Colts.

Brees unquestionably worthy of being the first ballot Hall of Famer that he is.

Then there's Roger Craig, who got in from the.

Senior committee.

Craig was a player who really redefined the position of running back.

While others did catch passes.

Lyondell Mitchell coming to mind, Chuck Foreman coming to mind.

Roger Craig took it to a whole another level.

In 1984, he became the first player ever to rush for 1000 yards and receive for 1000 yards in the same season.

Perhaps not surprisingly, culminating in a Super Bowl 19.

Victory over the Dolphins for San Francisco.

Craig went on to win 2 more Super Bowls as the lead back for the 49ers before finishing his career with the Raiders and Vikings.

But make no mistake, while Craig's career ended quietly, he made quite a boom during his playing days with the 49ers, where he was a preeminent back on the preeminent team.

In the case of Larry Fitzgerald, he often did not have the great spot.

Supporting cast.

He was the only star at times on the Cardinals.

And yet he was able to endure and thrive.

9 1000 yard seasons, a three-time All-Pro, held to lead the Cardinals to Super Bowl 43 with a virtuoso performance in the postseason, falling just shy against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

He is second all-time to Jerry Rice in receiving yardage.

And yes, at points in his career, Kurt Warner, Anquan Boldin on the team, but so often, he was the only center of attention for defenses and it did not matter as he continued to amass one great year after the next.

In the case of Luke Kuechly, sometimes it is better to be great for a short burst than good for a long period.

Kuechly, 8 years with the Carolina Panthers before retiring, but he made them all count.

He was a defensive.

Rookie of the Year in 2012.

In 2013, the Defensive Player of the Year.

He helped the Panthers go 15-1 in 2015 and get to Super Bowl 50.

He was an all-pro every year of his career except his rookie campaign, five times as a first-team member, and he made the Pro Bowl in all of those years .

Kuechly was the defining linebacker of his time, even though only playing for less than a decade.

Other than Gay Sayers, he will be the youngest and shrine ever into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at just 35 years old.

And finally, Adam Vinattieri, who split his career between the Patriots and the Colts, winning Super Bowls with both, 4 rings in total.

He had the game-winning kicks in Super Bowl 36 and Super Bowl 38.

Giving the Patriots their first two franchise championships.

And on top of that, Vinattieri, the most field goals made ever in the regular season and the postseason, a full career.

He joins Jan Stennerod and Morton Anderson as the only true place kickers to ever be brought into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.