Terrell Owens is second in NFL history in receiving yards. He’s third in league history with 153 touchdown catches, eighth all-time in receptions and was a first-team All-Pro five times.
Yet he’s not in the Hall of Fame after two years of eligibility.
Yes, there are mitigating factors when it comes to the fiery Owens, as multiple Hall of Fame voters have explained over the past few days that Owens’ attitude and demeanor appear to be at least part of the reason he wasn’t selected either of the past two years, if not the entire reason.
But it also leads to a question. Could Owens taking longer to get in combined with the list of big-time worthy players continuing to grow by the year hurt Calvin Johnson’s chances when the former Detroit Lions great becomes eligible in 2021?
It’s possible.
Owens’ candidacy alone probably won’t hurt Johnson, but considering the list of players who’ll become eligible in the next few years, there’s a decent chance Johnson won’t be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. That is despite being, like Owens, one of the best players of his generation regardless of position.
In comparing Johnson directly to Owens, Owens has better stats and more longevity, although Johnson walked away a year ago on his own accord. Johnson doesn’t have the locker room issues Owens did. Unlike Owens, Johnson was a model teammate at all times. He rarely spoke out and was universally respected, while Owens had some issues with the clubs he played for.
If Johnson isn’t an early-ballot Hall of Famer, though, it’ll likely have more to do with circumstance and other players involved.
Johnson will be entering the eligibility pool in an insanely strong year, with two likely first-ballot locks in Peyton Manning and Charles Woodson as well as candidates such as Marshawn Lynch, and Jared Allen, all deserving of long looks. Plus, there are likely to be leftover candidates from strong classes in front of Johnson, both at receiver and other positions.
At Johnson’s own position, working with the assumption Randy Moss should get in the Hall in either 2018 or 2019, the candidates could include at least one of a group of receivers such as Owens, Hines Ward, Torry Holt, Isaac Bruce and Reggie Wayne. Other than Owens, none were as transcendent as Johnson, but all had better numbers and better overall team success.
Consider, too, that only five receivers — Jerry Rice, Steve Largent, Paul Warfield, Lance Alworth and Raymond Berry — have been first-ballot Hall of Famers. Michael Irvin, Marvin Harrison, Cris Carter and James Lofton all had to wait. Orlando Pace, Michael Strahan, Jerome Bettis and Curtis Martin recently had to wait at other positions, too.
So there’s a chance Johnson could join either one of those lists, based on circumstances his own career couldn’t control.
Johnson, for what it’s worth, told ESPN in December he hasn’t thought much about the Hall of Fame. The only time he does consider it is when someone — be it his father or someone else — brings it up. Even then, he doesn’t ruminate on it much.
First, his potential enshrinement is at minimum four years away. And second, Johnson is content with how he played in his career. He hit goals that he wanted to. He knows how good he was and how people viewed him.
“My thing is, everything I do, I leave it out there and let the chips fall where they may,” Johnson said. “I put up some great numbers. Hell, like I said, if anything, we didn’t have the playoff success, the team success that I wanted to have, that I’m sure the organization wanted to have.
“It is what it is. I balled out, had some good years, man, had fun and did it with some guys and made relationships that will never end.”
Johnson is No. 22 in career receiving touchdowns (83), No. 29 in yards (11,619) and No. 43 in receptions (731). There are players ahead of Johnson in every category who likely won’t go to the Hall of Fame. Plus, Johnson’s longevity could come into question, although he walked away as still one of the best in the game, with six straight 1,000-yard seasons to end his career. And he never had a down year, either, with over 750 yards receiving in every season he played.
So there’s no doubt he’s worthy, and it would be stunning if he didn’t get in at some point. But when you look at Calvin Johnson — and you look at the Hall of Fame voting — understand that he may have to wait longer than most people might anticipate.
