Six Elected to Hall of Fame

The 2007 NFL Hall of Fame class was announced today and six new members join an elite group of individuals.

Michael Irvin, Thurman Thomas, Bruce Matthews, Roger Wherli, Charlie Sanders and Gene Nickerson were selected from among 17 finalists by the 40-member media panel.

NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue and WR Art Monk were the biggest notables who failed to make the final cut. Tagliabue was considered a sure thing after stepping down as NFL chief after 18 years at the helm, but the legacy he left wasn't enough to impress the voters.

Also failing to get enough votes were Derrick Thomas, Andre Reed, Richard Dent, Bob Kuechenberg, Fred Dean, Ray Guy, Russ Grimm, Andre Tippett and Gary Zimmerman.

Irvin finished his career with 750 receptions for 11,904 yards and 65 touchdowns. He was selected to five straight Pro Bowls and picked for the NFL's all-decade team of the 1990s.

Thomas was the league's most valuable player in 1991, when he gained more than 2,000 yards from scrimmage. When he retired in 2,000, he ranked sixth all-time in career yards from scrimmage (16,532), with 12,074 yards rushing. Only Emmitt Smith and Barry Sanders ran for more yards in the 1990s.

Matthews, the only player in his first year of eligibility, spent 19 seasons with the Oilers/Titans franchise, playing more games than any positional player in NFL history when he retired in 2001. He did it as a guard, tackle and center. Matthews never missed a game because of injury.

Wehrli was a five-time All-Pro cornerback who played 14 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals, starting as a rookie in 1969. He once intercepted three passes by Roger Staubach in a win over Dallas and made the league's 1970s all-decade squad.

Sanders spent a decade with the Lions and made seven Pro Bowls. Hickerson played 15 seasons for the Browns as the lead blocker for three Hall of Famers -- Jim Brown, Leroy Kelly, Bobby Mitchell -- and has been eligible for 29 years.

Inductions will be Aug. 4-5 in Canton, Ohio. The Steelers and Saints will play in the annual Hall of Fame game.


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