My guess about who is a happy man today...

[Matt in KC]

Drew may be happy about Farve, but I don't think he'll ever get into the HOF.

 

http://www.nfl.com/players/drewbledsoe/car...ts?id=BLE195074

 

Only 5 of his 14 years did he have a QB rating over 80 (top year = 87.7 in 1997), and three years were in the 60's. He was a pocket passer with a big arm, but without enough charisma, skill (stats) or innovation to be enshrined. I always thought he received more respect as a leader in the media than he deserved.

[Adam]

Whom do you see as the next set of QBs to gain induction.

 

I will also try to check past records to see what the record is for years without a QB induction.

 

Several thousand folks showed up in dicey weather at the Ralph for the Welcome Drew festival and several thousand season tickets got sold based on the hype (ironically he fulfilled the hype his first year). I think in the end the hype will have a big impact on this popularity contest. Do you disagree?

Drew had some good years in New England, but aside from a few years, he didn't have that wow factor- quite the contrary. People had the impression that his holding the ball cost his teams games.

 

To me, you shouldn't have to look at a players stats to determine hall of fame worthiness, you can tell by watching.

 

My upcoming HOF QB's would be Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Phil Simms and possibly Boomer Esiason (I'm not sure on him). Honorable mention to Steve McNair and Stan Humphries who had great years bot not the longevity

[1billsfan]

Drew had some good years in New England, but aside from a few years, he didn't have that wow factor- quite the contrary. People had the impression that his holding the ball cost his teams games.

 

To me, you shouldn't have to look at a players stats to determine hall of fame worthiness, you can tell by watching.

 

My upcoming HOF QB's would be Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Phil Simms and possibly Boomer Esiason (I'm not sure on him). Honorable mention to Steve McNair and Stan Humphries who had great years bot not the longevity

 

Simms might eventually get in because he's a New York hero, was rock solid for the Giants back when the league was a whole lot tougher than it is today and had an off-the-charts Superbowl. I don't have much of a problem with Phil Simms. However I think you're way off on Esiason, McMair and Humphries. I don't see any of them as Hall of Famers. At QB you need "something" to hang your hat on that gets you in and none of them have that "something".

[Chilly]

Thank you for the post as it is far better than many of the fact-free screeds in this thread in that it does propose an alternative who is more deserving of an HOF spot than Bledsoe.

 

http://www.nfl.com/players/drewbledsoe/car...ts?id=BLE195074

[spartacus]

The very basis of your entire arguement is that because there are no QBs that seem worthy in the next few years, Bledsoe is virtually a lock for a spot in Canton. Take a moment to re-read your post and think about what you are saying. You are saying Bledsoe will get a spot in Canton by default. That is ludicous. The merits of the HoF are most certainly not based on quota-filling. Give your head a shake.

 

Hopefully the absence of QBs in line for Canton will allow Andre Reed, a real HOfer, to get in

[GG]

When one links this fact with the fact that Bledsoe's cumulative stats far outpace Jones, it strikes me as not much of a question that Bledsoe is a better candidate than Bert Jones.

 

The reason that I brought up Bert Jones is specifically to highlight his misfortune of playing on some crappy teams that led to his premature exit from the game. But game per game he was a better QB than Bledsoe, who rode the wave of his first 4 seasons to an otherwise mediocre, but relatively long, NFL career. The game also changed to benefit Bledsoe. But just because he put up big numbers by virtue of throwing 60 passes a game does not make him Canton worthy. Jones, Manning, and Pastorini were better QBs from that era, and absolutely Kenny Anderson should be consider well ahead of Bledsoe.

[Nervous Guy]

Drew may be happy about Farve, but I don't think he'll ever get into the HOF.

 

http://www.nfl.com/players/drewbledsoe/car...ts?id=BLE195074

 

Only 5 of his 14 years did he have a QB rating over 80 (top year = 87.7 in 1997), and three years were in the 60's. He was a pocket passer with a big arm, but without enough charisma, skill (stats) or innovation to be enshrined. I always thought he received more respect as a leader in the media than he deserved.

http://www.nfl.com/players/kenanderson/car...ts?id=AND324128

 

IF Bledsoe ever gets in it's an injustice!

[Bill from NYC]

The reason that I brought up Bert Jones is specifically to highlight his misfortune of playing on some crappy teams that led to his premature exit from the game. But game per game he was a better QB than Bledsoe, who rode the wave of his first 4 seasons to an otherwise mediocre, but relatively long, NFL career. The game also changed to benefit Bledsoe. But just because he put up big numbers by virtue of throwing 60 passes a game does not make him Canton worthy. Jones, Manning, and Pastorini were better QBs from that era, and absolutely Kenny Anderson should be consider well ahead of Bledsoe.

As Alaska Darin once stated, Jones might have been the best ever if not for the injuries. There are only a couple of qbs who ever played that were superior at every single phase of the position, and Jones was one of them. He could make as many throws as Elway.

[bradjames24]

Using his TD pass in the '02 AFC Champ game against Pitt is hardly a reason to get into the hall of fame. Neither is a pro bowl birth as a member of the Bills.

 

I was a Drew supporter when he was here, but that guy is not a hall of fame QB. The Hall is an exclusive club,

[Pyrite Gal]

The reason that I brought up Bert Jones is specifically to highlight his misfortune of playing on some crappy teams that led to his premature exit from the game. But game per game he was a better QB than Bledsoe, who rode the wave of his first 4 seasons to an otherwise mediocre, but relatively long, NFL career. The game also changed to benefit Bledsoe. But just because he put up big numbers by virtue of throwing 60 passes a game does not make him Canton worthy. Jones, Manning, and Pastorini were better QBs from that era, and absolutely Kenny Anderson should be consider well ahead of Bledsoe.

Surely you are not arguing that having the durability to last a long time in the NFL as Bledsoe did (old stone feet took a pounding from sacks but simply stood back up with a stupid grin on his face for the most part- he did go out for an extended period when a tackle collapsed his lung, but came back in that same season to throw the winning TD pass in a must win game and even made the Pro Bowl after the serious injury).

 

Jones on the other hand lit it up a number of seasons (though actually his QB rating is about the same as Bledsoe's) but injury effectively ended his career.

 

Making a premature exit makes you a worse QB, showing up again and again means someone is making a judgment that you are a good enough player to be paid big bucks to play.

 

Again on the face of it, when one looks at accumulated stats, success getting to the SB and being an essential part of a winner, durability, Pro Bowl selections (4 for Bledsoe and for Bert Jones) I think that there is little comparison.

 

I assume since you are referring to oldsters like Jones and Pastorini by Manning you are referring to Archie rather than Peyton who is a lock but far into the future so he is not the voting competition for the retired Bledsoe. Though again looking at the record there is no comparison between Archie and Bledsoe. Archie never even led his team to a winning record. Though he also played a long time for a team which often fell behind so he was slinging it, Archie produced a little more than half the yards as Bledsoe.

 

As Peyton and Eli are of a different voting pool from Bledsoe (unless Peyton is gonna retire soon) and Archie is no where near Bledsoe in accomplishments (that is of course unless they open a special Stud HOF for sperm donors and Archie and Seattle Slew will be battling it out.

 

Pastorini is interesting in that one of his teams did get the SB and his toughness and durability are unquestionable. Yet he threw way more INTs than TDs and this is probably why his career QB rating is a pedestrian 58 or so. Again despite Pastorini like Bledsoe being tough enough to often answer the starting bell, his total passing yardage, completions, and basic QB stats simply pale next to Bledsoe's numbers. Again there would seem to be little comparison here.

 

I think that actually someone raised a better name for comparison in a different post. While Ken Anderson with the Bengals falls well short of Bledsoe in total yardage and completions, but his lengthy career, SB appearance, and getting 4 Pro Bowl nods like Bledsoe makes him at least comparable.

 

I think one can make a fair case that if they passed on Anderson they would pass on Bledsoe.

 

However, I think here the popularity contest kicks in. Anderson had the bad luck to be competing for HOF acknowledgment with some of the best and most successful QBs to play the game. Given a choice between Bradshaw and Anderson they faced each other head to head with the Pitts teams winning all the time. Anderson lost in the SB to the Montana led 49ers (or was it Steve Young but who cares same difference. The 80s saw and unprecedented plethora of QB talent.

 

If Anderson gets in its probably as a senior.

 

Bledsoe will hit eligibility after a long drought of QB HOF members and one which will not be broken now for 2 or more years (whenever Favre retires again but if he puts up an 08 like his 07 it may be a while).

 

I think Bledsoe easily distinguishes himself from the Bert Jones and Archie Mannings, and it is why I suspect he is a happy man to see Favre separate from him in being a QB in waiting.

[Matt in KC]

http://www.nfl.com/players/kenanderson/car...ts?id=AND324128

 

IF Bledsoe ever gets in it's an injustice!

Anderson had two seasons with over a 95 QB rating and 300+ yards rushing(!) seven years apart ('74, '81). He is a good comparison to Bledsoe, IMO. Both played just over 190 games over 14-16 seasons. Anderson's personal highs were higher, and his career stats stronger.

 

Anderson was an instution in Cincinnatti. I've always thought if players are so strongly associated with a single team, especially over a long career, it helps their chances of getting into Canton. How could you talk about the history of various teams without mentioning say Steve Largent, Dan Marino, Barry Sanders, Anthony Muñoz, Favre, heck... Ray Guy. I know Bledsoe was in NE for a long time, but I just don't have the same strong association from him.

 

BTW - saw this tidbit in Anderson's Wiki article:

Anderson's best season was in 1981, although it started out very badly for him. In the Bengals opening game against the Seattle Seahawks, Anderson was intercepted 3 times in the first half and the Seahawks built up a 21-0 halftime lead. In the second half, Cincinnati coach Forrest Gregg benched Anderson and brought in third string quarterback Turk Schonert (second string quarterback Jack Thompson was injured at the time). With Schonert in command of the offense, the Bengals stormed back and won the game 27-21.

[Matt in KC]

So yeah, I think Ken Anderson is a good comparison to Bledsoe and is more likely to be enshrined (as a senior, if at all). I think PG has a point that strong competition in a year, especially at your position hurts your chances of getting selected, but I don't think the opposite is true. I think a few years with weak QB candidates makes neither Anderson nor Bledsoe more liely to get in.

[KnightRider]

Whom do you see as the next set of QBs to gain induction.

 

After Farve, I don't see anyone before Manning. 1990s QB's simply weren't rich in HOFers the way the 1980s QBs were..

[Pyrite Gal]

Using his TD pass in the '02 AFC Champ game against Pitt is hardly a reason to get into the hall of fame. Neither is a pro bowl birth as a member of the Bills.

 

I was a Drew supporter when he was here, but that guy is not a hall of fame QB. The Hall is an exclusive club,

They certainly are not reason enough in themselves as individual incidents. However, they are reasonable considerations to answer those who might whine that he never led a team to an SB win (correct he did not, but like it or not he did play an essential role throwing the winning TD in a must win game in the 02 run to the SB crown). Bledsoe did not lead his team to an SB win but many QBs and some HOFers have not so this is not a disqualifier. He does have a ring and he deserves it. Its part of his story.

 

Also the Bills Pro Bowl is significant in that NE had made the correct choice of taking the younger (and now we see more talented) stud and simply axed Bledsoe. His making the Pro Bowl after he was axed his notable and commendable.

 

Do you think some other QB deserved it more that year?

[Chilly]

They certainly are not reason enough in themselves as individual incidents. However, they are reasonable considerations to answer those who might whine that he never led a team to an SB win (correct he did not, but like it or not he did play an essential role throwing the winning TD in a must win game in the 02 run to the SB crown). Bledsoe did not lead his team to an SB win but many QBs and some HOFers have not so this is not a disqualifier. He does have a ring and he deserves it. Its part of his story.

 

Also the Bills Pro Bowl is significant in that NE had made the correct choice of taking the younger (and now we see more talented) stud and simply axed Bledsoe. His making the Pro Bowl after he was axed his notable and commendable.

 

Do you think some other QB deserved it more that year?

 

There is absolutely no measure by which you can say Bledsoe should or will get into the hall. None.

 

He does not have a reputation for being an exceptional quarterback. He does not have the stats for being an exceptional quarterback. He does not have the popularity of other hall of fame quarterbacks.

 

The hall isn't just going to let Bledsoe in because he's a QB and happens to have retired at some magical time.

[Pyrite Gal]

There is absolutely no measure by which you can say Bledsoe should or will get into the hall. None.

 

He does not have a reputation for being an exceptional quarterback. He does not have the stats for being an exceptional quarterback. He does not have the popularity of other hall of fame quarterbacks.

 

The hall isn't just going to let Bledsoe in because he's a QB and happens to have retired at some magical time.

Do you think being elected to 4 Pro Bowls is some measure of folks judging him to be an exceptional QB.

 

Do you think the Welcome Drew Bledsoe party which was held on a winter workday and drew loads of folks to the Ralph was a measure of many judging him to be an exceptional QB.

 

What about the spike in Bills season ticket sales that accompanied his arrival, was this not some measure of popularity.

 

Was he run out of town here, NE and to some extent in Dallas also?

 

Yep it's true.

 

However HOF voting is done not as a snapshot of where a player is at a particular moment and in fact not even how his career or time with a team ended. Jimbo was not disqualified from the HOF because he left the field completely addled on the back of a golf cart, he was elected due to the sum total of his career and its accomplishments and warts.

 

I am happy to acknowledge the truth that Bledsoe was run out of town on a rail. However, you also would need to acknowledge the truth that for various point in his career from his high-flying drafting, to Tom Brady talking about how valuable it was to have a vet QB helping him analyze the game as a second year sudden starter, to the hullabaloo and real excitement that accompanied his arrival here in Buffalo to likely even some exciting times in Dallas where they were pleased the Quincy Carter era (or was it error) had ended but the Steve Romo era had not yet begun.

 

Unless you are willing to acknowledge both the sad and the glad reality then your views are only half accurate. IO know its hard for some but reality is reality.

[Stenbar]

Hopefully the absence of QBs in line for Canton will allow Andre Reed, a real HOfer, to get in

I think the one play that will keep Reed out of the hall of fame forever wil be thehelmet toss of the non interference call in the SuperBowl..It took away a game changing oppurtuntiy and began the fallapart turnover machine that era Bills will be known for in the SuperBowl...I remeber watching it and saying OMG what did you just do....

[Chilly]

Do you think being elected to 4 Pro Bowls is some measure of folks judging him to be an exceptional QB.

 

There's a pretty big difference between getting in the pro bowl and being hall of fame level. Vince Young made the pro bowl, but no one in their right mind would argue that he's a hall of famer.

 

Do you think the Welcome Drew Bledsoe party which was held on a winter workday and drew loads of folks to the Ralph was a measure of many judging him to be an exceptional QB.

 

What about the spike in Bills season ticket sales that accompanied his arrival, was this not some measure of popularity.

 

Ask those same people what they think of him now.

 

Was he run out of town here, NE and to some extent in Dallas also?

 

Yep it's true.

 

However HOF voting is done not as a snapshot of where a player is at a particular moment and in fact not even how his career or time with a team ended. Jimbo was not disqualified from the HOF because he left the field completely addled on the back of a golf cart, he was elected due to the sum total of his career and its accomplishments and warts.

 

Its also not just judged on the four seasons where he was a successful quarterback, but his entire career.

 

I am happy to acknowledge the truth that Bledsoe was run out of town on a rail. However, you also would need to acknowledge the truth that for various point in his career from his high-flying drafting, to Tom Brady talking about how valuable it was to have a vet QB helping him analyze the game as a second year sudden starter, to the hullabaloo and real excitement that accompanied his arrival here in Buffalo to likely even some exciting times in Dallas where they were pleased the Quincy Carter era (or was it error) had ended but the Steve Romo era had not yet begun.

 

I've never once heard a hall of fame voter vote someone into the hall of fame because of how excited he made the fans of a city, or because he was an upgrade over a former player.

 

Unless you are willing to acknowledge both the sad and the glad reality then your views are only half accurate. IO know its hard for some but reality is reality.

 

The accomplishments you point to were all short, initial-love periods that were defined by serious disappointment. Because he was initially popular in Buffalo doesn't mean he is still popular through the entire league.

 

Ask Dallas fans what they think of the guy, ask Buffalo fans, ask NE fans, hell, ask my roommates who are Texans fans - they'll tell you that he was a decent guy, probably even a decent quarterback, but not ONE would think he's HOF worthy.

 

There isn't even a discussion about whether he's hall of fame worthy in the media, which almost any player that has the slightest shot gets (see: John Lynch).

[KnightRider]

Do you think being elected to 4 Pro Bowls is some measure of folks judging him to be an exceptional QB.

 

Do you think the Welcome Drew Bledsoe party which was held on a winter workday and drew loads of folks to the Ralph was a measure of many judging him to be an exceptional QB.

 

What about the spike in Bills season ticket sales that accompanied his arrival, was this not some measure of popularity.

 

Was he run out of town here, NE and to some extent in Dallas also?

 

Yep it's true.

 

However HOF voting is done not as a snapshot of where a player is at a particular moment and in fact not even how his career or time with a team ended. Jimbo was not disqualified from the HOF because he left the field completely addled on the back of a golf cart, he was elected due to the sum total of his career and its accomplishments and warts.

 

Unless you are willing to acknowledge both the sad and the glad reality then your views are only half accurate. IO know its hard for some but reality is reality.

 

No, as he did not live up to the hype. We wanted the second coming of Kelly, and we got Drew. Good QB? Yes. Great QB? No.

 

I think the guy that you can most accurately compare Bledsoe to is the guy that has played in the same era. Bledsoe doesn't come close to measuring up to Favre. His stats are more similar to Vinnie T's than Brett Favre's over the same period of performance. If you want to compare to Kelly, you have to look at Drew's average 230 ypg passing vs. Kelly's 254 ypg, (which is highest of any current HOFer).

[Pyrite Gal]

There's a pretty big difference between getting in the pro bowl and being hall of fame level. Vince Young made the pro bowl, but no one in their right mind would argue that he's a hall of famer.

Which is exactly why I did not state this factual event to argue he should be in the HOF because of it, simply to respond to a post which claimed that no one seriously considers DB an exceptional QB and also this poster argued that no one would make the claim he is (was) popular.

 

The 4 Pro Bowl berths do not cinch an argument he should be in the HOF (personally I would remove OJ from the HOF after he beat the rap for killing two people but certainly the NFL rules say it is just about football but for me human rules take precedence but I am not in charge) but they are a strong indication that his peers, coaches and fans found him to be an exceptional QB for roughly a third of his career.

 

Likewise also the fact that there was such a massive outpouring of public interest and folks putting cash down when he was signed are not arguments at all should go in the hall.

 

However, anyone in their right mind would understand if the read English that stating this factual event does that the argument replied to in the post that no one could rationally argue that Bledsoe was popular was simply wrong.