Can Ricky Williams make the Hall of Fame?

[djphinfan]

Why is it ridiculous and naive?....Ricky has more yards rushing than Gale Sayers who is in the Hall of Fame, despite not winning a SB? Too bad you Ricky haters can't look past some things he did off the field.

first of all dude,i'am not a ricky hater,i love the guy and look forward to seeing him in our backfield with ronnie and daunte,but to even suggest THE HOF in the same breath as him is not even debatable,its laughable and if you don't see that then i don't know what to tell ya

 

[Ozzy]

Ricky has more yards rushing than Gale Sayers who is in the Hall of Fame, despite not winning a SB? Too bad you Ricky haters can't look past some things he did off the field.

It's not about hating him.

Ricky is not worthy of being in the NFL HOF for the simple fact that he walked out and turned his back on the NFL's most prized possession. The game of football.

Dont forget the fact that the NFL does not vote him in. It's the sportwriters. Do you think he won over the sportswriters in lets say Seattle for walking out on the NFL because he was guilty of something he did off the field?

If Art Monk is having trouble getting in, Ricky may never sniff the second round.

 

[NoblePhin]

hof for given the most chances to succeed in the nfl and waste it

 

[Mr.Majestik]

Re:

I agree for the most part, but you can't just use numbers to define whether a guy was a HOF player. If you do then Terry Bradshaw, Bob Griese and many others shouldnt be in it. It's more about the impact you make on the game than pure numbers.

Even that said Ricky shouldnt even be mentioned

This is absolutely correct. It's why Earl Campbell is in the Hall of Fame, and Ottis Anderson will probably never make it, even though they played at the same time, and Anderson actually had more yardage. Joe Namath has more interceptions then touchdowns, but he's in the Hall of Fame for "the guarantee". The Hall is subjective, and the criteria for entry is flexible. Marcus Allen is in the HOF and only went over a thousand yards three times in 16 years I think. Ricky Williams simply hasn't done anything to be mentioned as a Hall of Famer. He's been to one Pro Bowl. Is Terrell Davis going to make it? Doubtful. Is Fred Taylor? No. Priest Holmes. No. Tiki Barber. Probably not. Jerome Bettis? Maybe, barely. Ricky Williams? Silly. During Ricky's best year as a poor he was still probably only the sixth best running back in the AFC--Tomlinson, James, Holmes, Martin, Lewis could all claim greatness at the time.

 

[shula_guy]

No, he won’t make it. From a number stand point he will fall short because of him sharing the football here and most probably any where else he goes because they likely wouldn’t trust him and have a fairly decent guy already there to share the load with.

From a dedication standpoint, its also pretty fair to question if he wants to be the number one guy and carry the rock 350+ times a season for at least the next four seasons. I don’t think he wants to do that. He complained about Wanny running him into the ground so I don’t think he wants to endure that NFL punishment for much longer.

The Voters: Hall of Fame Voters are sports writers most of them probably into there late forty’s or early fifties. A large percentage of them will NEVER vote for Ricky Williams for his past transgressions. Voters are supposed to only judge strictly from what they see on the Football field. We all know that isn’t the case.

So to answer your question, can he? Certainly, the odds are stacked against him but he certainly has the ability. Ricky may be the most talented running back to ever dawn a uniform. I just don’t think he will, I don’t think its very important to Ricky, I think he has other things on his mind. I love Ricky Williams, I wish him well in whatever he does in the future. He’s a great player and a unique individual and most people don’t realize how down to earth Ricky is.

My favorite quote from Ricky, it was a reporter asking him how he felt about only making the veteran minimum:

"If you think about it, that’s still a lot of money"

Talk about a breath of fresh air from guys like T.O. claiming they "can’t feed their family’s." I wish Ricky good luck with whatever he decides to do in his future, but no, I do not think he makes the Hall of Fame. He certainly could have if his heart was in it as much as Thurman Thomas’s was.

Great post I could not of said it better myself. Also Ricky has not been reinstated into the league Its a bit premature to even consider HOF talk. I could be wrong but im pretty sure he will need to be allowed to play in the nfl before he can get to the hof.

 

[Alex44]

Great post I could not of said it better myself. Also Ricky has not been reinstated into the league Its a bit premature to even consider HOF talk. I could be wrong but im pretty sure he will need to be allowed to play in the nfl before he can get to the hof.

yeah, even though his suspension is over the league can say 'we dont want you' and have it be perfectly legal.

 

[brandon27]

I doubt he'll get there. He's going to have to stay clean, and do something insanely incredible before he makes it there. Like, win 3 superbowls, be the mvp in all 3, and lead the league in rushing the rest of his career. Theres way to many negatives that people are going to remember of his career first. It'll be tough for him.

 

[BLITZKRIEG]

I doubt it. Maybe had he stayed clean, he would be considered. His suspensions have tarnished / hindered his career too much in my opinion....

PHINZ RULE!!!

 

[PhinsRock]

No chance IMO, too old now to finish his career with high enough numbers to get in. I just wish I had his connections for wacky tobbacky.

 

[mia4ever]

Only if he has an entire HOF career *starting now*. If he plays solid for the next 8-10 years and puts up amazing numbers, then he'd have a chance to overcome the rightfully-earned negative perceptions. I think that is about as likely as Ray Lucas coming out of 'retirement' to lead us to five straight Super Bowl victories. Hmmm.... maybe six.

So, no. He's squandered the best parts of his career. And this coming from someone who has no gripe with the guy and wants him back next year.

RW is 30 right

 

[yankeehillbilly]

I agree for the most part, but you can't just use numbers to define whether a guy was a HOF player. If you do then Terry Bradshaw, Bob Griese and many others shouldnt be in it. It's more about the impact you make on the game than pure numbers.

Even that said Ricky shouldnt even be mentioned

ESPECIALLY with that said Ricky shouldnt even be mentioned. Ricky's numbers are his ONLY positve, and they still arent good enough to get him a nomination.

 

[Frostblade]

Undoubtedly the bloke's got the talent to be up there with the Hall of Famers. But unless he can show real committment to the game and whichever team he's playing for for the last few years of his career, I doubt he'll make it in.

 

[Phanatical]

Can Ricky Williams make the Hall of Fame? .

Yes, he CAN make the hall of fame. WILL he make the hall of fame? That's a question that is seriously premature. If he can get reinstated, get back on a team, and play good ball again for three or four consecutive years, then perhaps he has an outside shot. But right now, that's like asking if Cleo can make the hall of fame.

 

[Emskirch]

I think he will be out of the league regardless of where he plays in two years.

No Hall of Fame, and what a waste of talent!

 

[finserg]

The guy will not make it because he rather waste his
career on garbage... The guy has so much talent its sad how he is throwing it away.if he would of stay clean he would be a top 10 rb in the nfl..