The Pittsburgh Steelers were not represented in the Hall of Fame class that was announced this week. They did not have any of the 15 modern-era finalists and they had no senior-era player finalists for consideration. The New York Jets, who have not made a Super Bowl since before the merger, produced two inductees and with all due respect, what in the wide world of sports is going on with the Pro Football Hall of Fame?
The Steelers have the third most players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but have a backlog of deserving candidates that are being ignored at this point. Deion Sanders made headlines when he suggested that Canton should create an inner sanctum of Hall of Famers, but maybe before they consider doing that, they should fix an egregious error.
L.C. Greenwood wasn’t among the senior finalists in 2022 and has not been one since 2006.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have a rich history of success that began 54 years ago when Chuck Noll became the head coach. They selected Joe Greene with the fourth pick of the 1969 NFL Draft and began an incredible run of draft classes where they selected at least one Hall of Fame player in four consecutive seasons. After missing a season, they picked four Hall of Fame players in the 1974 draft and added a fifth, Donnie Shell as an undrafted free agent.
The Steelers picked Greenwood in the same draft as Greene in the 10th round and he went on to play for 13 seasons in Pittsburgh. Sacks were not an official stat when he played, but according to the unofficial stats reported by Pro Football Reference, Greenwood finished his career with 78 career sacks in the regular season. Greenwood added 12.5 sacks in 18 career playoff games.
Greenwood also had five sacks in the Super Bowl, but he isn’t credited with the record because it was an unofficial stat. Incredibly, all five of those sacks were of Roger Staubach and four of them were in Super Bowl X. Greenwood should have at least shared the MVP with Lynn Swann in that game and maybe if he had, he wouldn’t be forgotten by the current collection of clowns who gather to decide who will be enshrined in Canton.
This year’s veteran committee should frankly be ashamed by selecting Joe Klecko and Chuck Howley for induction over Greenwood.
Near the end of his career, Howley, a Dallas Cowboys player, won a Super Bowl MVP in a losing effort that is arguably the worst game in Super Bowl History. He had 2 tackles and 2 interceptions in the Cowboys' Super Bowl V loss to the Colts. He was part of one Super Bowl Championship, was named to the All-Pro team five times, and made six Pro Bowls. The Hall of Fame voters who pick All-Decade Teams, left him off both the 1960's and 70's teams.
Klecko never sniffed a Super Bowl, but had one truly great season with 20.5 sacks for the New York Jets in 1981. He was runner-up to Lawrence Taylor in the Defensive Player of the Year voting that season that was capped off by the New York Jets sack exchange defense giving up 31 points to the Joe Ferguson-led 1982 Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card round of the AFC playoffs. Klecko made four Pro Bowls and was an All-Pro twice. The Hall of Fame voters left him off the 1980's All-Decade Team in favor of Keith Millard and Dave Butz.
Steelers Hall Of Fame Snubs Headlined By LC Greenwood
Greenwood unofficially has the most sacks in one Super Bowl game with four and the most in a career with five. He was a six-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro. Klecko and Greenwood are both tied with 78 career sacks, but Klecko put up 31 of those sacks in the two years of his ‘prime.’ Unlike Howley and Klecko, the Hall of Fame voters did put him on the 1970's All-Decade Team. Greenwood was a finalist for election six times, but has been ignored for 15 seasons now.
The Hall of Fame voters have had turnover since the Steelers legend was last eligible, but if you are picking historical candidates, how can Greenwood get ignored year after year? The current voters' peers thought enough of Greenwood to make him an All-Decade player and a repeated finalist for Canton. Klecko and Howley were not accorded the same historical value by voters themselves during that period, so why are they getting it now?
The co-creator of the Steel Curtain's omission as a finalist in favor of lesser defensive players is an egregious error that has to be corrected. It has been a decade since he passed away and perhaps that is why he is now forgotten year after year. He was a dominant pass rusher for a decade during a time when teams did not throw the ball more than 20 times a game.
The controversial inductions of players like Tony Boselli and Terrell Davis with short, but great playing careers have now been one-upped by a veteran’s committee that put a player with a pair of truly great years and an appearance in a Burt Reynolds movie in the Hall of Fame. Greenwood always wanted to go to Hollywood, maybe he should have.
It is past time for the man with the gold shoes to get a gold jacket.
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