Post by TheShadow on Feb 4, 2007 10:16:12 GMT -5
www.ajc.com
By STEVE WYCHE , D. ORLANDO LEDBETTER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Miami — Punter Ray Guy will have to wait at least another year. So will recently retired NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue and Redskins wide receiver Art Monk.
Thet were absent from the six inductees in the 2007 NFL Hall of Fame class, announced Saturday in Miami.
Michael Irvin lived up to his nickname 'The Playmaker' in helping Dallas win three Super Bowl titles in the 1990s.
Dallas wide receiver Michael Irvin, Buffalo running back Thurman Thomas, St. Louis Cardinals wide receiver Roger Wehrli, Houston/Tennessee offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, Detroit tight end Charlie Sanders and Browns offensive lineman Gene Hickerson were voted in by a panel of 40 media members.
Guy, the former Oakland Raiders great who lives in Thomson, did not make the first round of cuts, which went from 17 nominees to 11. He has been hoping to become the first punter to get into the Hall of Fame.
Guy was the first punter ever to be drafted in the first round (1973) and was named All-Pro six times in his 14-season career.
Maybe more surprising was the omission of Tagliabue, the NFL's commissioner from 1989-2006. Voters said there was an extensive conversation regarding Tagliabue, who stepped down last year and was replaced by Roger Goodell.
The new class of will be inducted the weekend of Aug. 4-5 in Canton before the annual Hall of Fame preseason game.