Former NFL running back Fred Taylor believes he belongs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. And after getting passed over repeatedly, he’s working on making the case to the voters.
“My numbers were better than [the] majority of the backs that had ever played this game. . . . Obviously if you’re not a first-ballot [Hall of Famer], then you got to kind of hit the campaign trail and kind of try to make certain arguments for yourself. But guys have made arguments for me, players that are in [the Hall of Fame],” Taylor told ESPN.
Taylor said that there are several Hall of Fame players who will vouch for him joining their fraternity.
“All of these guys that are in there, they’re not just saying it to say it,” Taylor said. “They themselves believe it’s the elite of the elite and if you’re not one of them in their mold, they wouldn’t vouch for you in that sense because it’s legendary. It’s Mecca. It’s football heaven. And they wouldn’t say these things if they didn’t believe it. Not just cause I’m a cool, nice, outgoing, fun-loving guy. I struck fear into defenses. They didn’t just go out there and say, ‘We’re going to hold him to 50 yards.’ They’re trying to say, ‘We trying to make sure he doesn’t get 50 yards on one carry.’”
Working against Taylor, however, is that he was never considered the best running back in the NFL: He never finished any season in the Top 5 in the league in rushing yards, yards from scrimmage or touchdowns, and was never a first-team All-Pro. He was only a Pro Bowler once, and never got to the Super Bowl.
So Taylor, despite his 11,695 career rushing yards, may have some more campaigning to do to convince a majority of the Hall of Fame Selection Committee that he belongs in Canton.