Should Kevin Greene Get a Spot in Canton?

It's easy to get frustrated with the Pro Football Hall of Fame voting, which often seems to have no rhyme or reason. A guy can go from seemingly out of voter's minds to in the Hall of Fame in a year or two. And unlike the Baseball Hall of Fame, where there seems to be a general consensus on what makes up a Hall of Famer, the Pro Football Hall of Fame is a melange of different ideas of whose great. Quarterbacks are over-represented while centers and offensive guards might as well forget about getting the call.

But after this year's election of six nominees, several of which seemed like less than slam dunks, it's given hope to a lot of football fans that some of their favorite former players could sneak into the Hall of Fame. If you're Kevin Greene, you have to be thrilled to see Andre Tippett get into the Hall of Fame, because if Andre Tippett is a Hall of Famer, than Kevin Greene should be getting ready for his bust..

Tippett had a very solid 11 year career with the Patriots. He finished with 100 sacks (9.1 per season), made it to five Pro Bowls, was a five time All-Pro, played in one Super Bowl and made the 1980s All-Decade team.

Kevin Greene's resume looks pretty similar. Greene played longer, with a 15-year NFL career. He also ranks third in the NFL in all-time sacks with 160 (first among linebackers). He was a five-time Pro Bowler like Tippett, although he was only a three-time All-Pro. He was a member of the 1990s All-Decade team, the NFL defensive player of the year in 1996 and also played in one Super Bowl. Stack them up and it's hard to see where Greene doesn't match up to Tippett.

Yes, he was much better rushing the quarterback than he was dropping into coverage, but when it came to rushing the quarterback, there have been few 3-4 linebackers nearly as good as Greene.

Sometimes it takes voters a while to catch up--it took them a couple of years to put Tippett in, but even with a great crop of first time Hall of Fame candidates popping up next year, it's time for Kevin Greene to get his bust in Canton.