Rodney Harrison and the Hall of Fame

by MaPatsFan on Jun 7, 2009 4:07 PM EDT

After an NFL player retires, talk of Hall of Fame candidacy inevitably surfaces. For some, it's a lock - "First Ballot HoF'er" is a term commonly associated with the likes of Tom Brady. For others, the waters are a bit murkier. Take, for instance, our very own Rodney Harrison. After announcing his retirement this past week, many opposing offenses breathed a sigh of relief. A relentless "prowler", Harrison was a no compromises, play to the whistle safety. And he was smart, too. Belichick gave him a lot of latitude on the field, freedom earned by years of success at the position.

But his no compromise style has hurt him as well. "Scarlet Lettered" by opponents as a dirty player and racking up $200,000 in fines, opposing players and coaches alike have labeled him one of the dirtiest players in the NFL. Opinions vary and are usually split by what laundry you wear. Interestingly enough, NFL Coaches labeled Harrison the dirtiest player in the NFL in a 2008 poll and this is despite the fact that safety Adrian Wilson of the Arizona Cardinals had a league-high 17 personal fouls to Harrison's 14. Did I mention Harrison's 14 was tied with Saints' defensive end Will Smith? There's clearly a bias at work, but what can you do? Rodney is branded despite overwhelming and clear evidence that others deserve that distinction. Let's move onto more discussion about Harrison's HoF chances.

Talking about HoF chances five years before a player is eligible can be nearly impossible, but an article in today's print version of The Boston Globe interviews voters John Clayton (ESPN), Dave Goldberg (AP), and Peter King (Sports Illustrated). These three bring up some interesting challenges for Harrison's inductance:

Both John Lynch and Rodney Harrison will be eligible at the same time, taking votes away from each other
"Only" 2 Pro Bowls
The difficulty getting safeties into the HoF
Use of the banned substance HgH

In my mind, the facts are hard to dispute:

Using personal fouls as the yardstick, he is NOT the dirtiest player in the NFL
Rodney Harrison is the ONLY NFL player in the history of the game to amass 30.5 sacks and 34 interceptions. Did I mention he did that in 186 games, averaging 12.4 per season?
Guided the Patriots' defensive backfield to two Super Bowls

This is a debate about laundry and not facts, unfortunately. Harrison is one of the best safeties to play the game...EVER. Rival fans will mention the bad and conveniently overlook the cold, hard facts. Can Harrison's undeniable stats overcome the negativity?

Poll

Should Rodney Harrison be inducted into the HoF?

Yes

191 votes

No

14 votes

Too early to tell

27 votes

232 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

Brown

Pats need to retire Troy Brown’s number.
Brown should be a HOF candidate in my eyes.
Pats players get no respect.
Bruschi should be headed for the HOF but will be hard pressed to make it.

by wdogg72 on Jun 7, 2009 9:34 PM EDT reply actions

Reputation

Reputation isbuilt over more than one season and by what a player does in the pile where cameras& refs can’t see

by steelerstyle on Jun 7, 2009 9:47 PM EDT reply actions

Open question

First off, with so few players inducted, it is an honour just to be considered for the HoF. I think Harrison is borderline material. He had a great career, but I could see him left out because of the reasons mentioned by Clayton and others.

by hythlodaeus on Jun 8, 2009 5:07 AM EDT reply actions

The odds don't look good, unfortunately.

I think the reputation is probably the biggest thing on the “dirty player” aspect. He’ll probably get voted as the dirtiest player this year as well – and he won’t even be playing. (I actually think he might get votes.)

I think the fact that so few safeties make it in and there are people questioning whether he is among the greats means he won’t make it in.

That said, if you were putting together your all time best team list, would Rodney Harrison in his prime be a consideration for your team? I think that is where he stands.

Even if he doesn’t make the Hall, he will be among greats.

by SlotMachinePlayer on Jun 8, 2009 11:40 AM EDT reply actions

I think he would have had more Pro Bowls too...

When you knock guys heads off the tend to not vote for you – lousy sports.

by SlotMachinePlayer on Jun 9, 2009 12:46 PM EDT up reply actions

agreed

hard to vote for a guy that makes them ‘curl up like a little girl.’

Keep the faith!

by Marima on Jun 9, 2009 2:35 PM EDT up reply actions

Lynch

is totally going in before Harrison is even considered. Lynch has the squeaky clean rep, the “Stanford pedigree” and a Super Bowl (and yes, he gets credit for one Super Bowl while Rodney’s rings will get swept aside).

The way this is done is such BS. Sadly, I’ve mentioned the most important things in the “debate” and there’s nothing to do with actually playing football involved yet.

Now, this is NOT a criticism of Lynch by any means. I’m just saying the PR focus of this sucks. At least it’s not another Brett Favre story though…

by Danno11 on Jun 10, 2009 3:48 AM EDT reply actions