Lori Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 http://myespn.go.com/blogs/afceast/0-1-15/...-in-Canton.html One of the all-time great Buffalo barroom debates -- right up there with "Is Zubaz acceptable to wear to work on Casual Fridays?" -- is whether Steve Tasker deserves to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Based on a list the NFL Network will unveil next week, he probably does belong in Canton. As part of its coverage to promote enshrinement weekend, the NFL Network will break out "The NFL's Top 10 Players Not in the Hall of Fame" at 8 p.m. Tuesday. The names have been released; the order has not. In addition to Tasker, the list includes Ken Anderson, Cris Carter, Bob Hayes, Alex Karras, Jerry Kramer, Jim Marshall, Ken Stabler, Derrick Thomas and Ricky Watters. I'd vote yes, but I think it will be tough for him to get in. Your thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Definitely deserved but they would be starting a whole new category for him. Very difficult nut to crack for him. IIRC, I saw a Dallas ST coach interviewed about 10 years ago or more who said they need to induct him and start a whole new wing on the HOF just for his contributions. Also, I'm almost positive that Marv Levy said that Bill Parcells told him that the guy they most game planned for when playing Buffalo was Tasker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tryan44 Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 I've always liked Tasker the most from those teams. He's the best all around special teams player not a kicker/punter ever. Loved the heart and fire he always played with. I used to be on special teams back in high school, and playing the same positions he did and seeing how great he was at them and how he could change games, I have no doubt in my mind he's a hall of famer. I hope he gets in, but since he wasn't a "major" contributor in the stats column, it makes his case much harder, but I definitely think he is more than deserving to be in the Hall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongLiveRalph Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 http://myespn.go.com/blogs/afceast/0-1-15/...-in-Canton.html I'd vote yes, but I think it will be tough for him to get in. Your thoughts? I'd vote yes for Zubaz on casual Friday too, but you're right, it will be tough to push through. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 I like that list except for Watters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chandler#81 Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 The Hall is infamous for rejecting ST's. I think there's only 2 - they're kickers- and it took way too long for that to happen. The injustice of not recognizing 'Teams' impact on any football game could be quickly righted by inducting the only 7 time Probowler specifically for his Special performances. As many have stated here, I met him a couple times at speaking engagements and he and Sarah are HOFer's in life as well. I'm sure all our Hallers' bend ears and regularly pitch for him to get elected, and we should all capitalize on this upcoming show by really put forth a groundswell of support for his induction. He was high on the list when he became eligible originally, but he's been slipping every year since. Start the write -in campaign!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Peter King puts him on his all time team. He's in very impressive company for the whole team. Linkage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wacka Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Andre Reed should be on that list too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VABills Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Lori, your reputation just went two notches. You're agreeing with anything ESPN (any any mainstream) media says. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Andre Reed should be on that list too. I feel like crap for not noticing that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEAST MODE BABY! Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 THat was some good writing. ESPN, regardless of their slant, does employ/retain some good sports writers IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KRC Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Steve Tasker - Yes Ken Anderson - No Cris Carter - Yes Bob Hayes - Yes Alex Karras - Yes Jerry Kramer - Yes Jim Marshall - Yes Ken Stabler - No Derrick Thomas - Yes Ricky Watters - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Ed Bouchette is a douchebag. Steve Tasker made it among the 26 semifinalists and Donnie Shell did not. Both were great special teams players with one difference -- Shell graduated to become one of the great strong safeties in the NFL. Tasker remained strictly a special teams player. He could not even start for his own teams -- yet voters thought more of him for the Hall of Fame than they did Shell. Better thoughts Special teams players might not get all the glory in the NFL, but Steve Tasker is one player whose special teams play has been as heralded as a quarterback or running back. Tasker played 13 years for the Buffalo Bills, during which time he was instrumental in the Bill's string of four consecutive AFC Championship wins and trips to the Super Bowl, from 1991-1994. He was selected for the Pro Bowl seven times and he was All Pro five times. He is the only special teams player to be selected as MVP for a Pro Bowl, which happened in 1993. He had an average 21.1 yards for kickoff returns and 186 tackles. Though only 5 foot 8 inches tall and 183 pounds, he was a feared tackler. As a result, the NFL Hall of Fame committee selected him for the NFL's All Time Team. He's the 24th person to be placed on the Bills' Wall of Fame. Tasker spent his college years at Northwestern. The Houston Oilers drafted him in the ninth round in 1985, and then traded him to the Bills in 1986. Since 1998, he has been a game analyst for the NFL on CBS. He can also be heard doing local broadcasts for Bills' pre-season games. I know the HOF committee doesn't vote for induction, writers do, but how can that be ignored? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HopsGuy Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 I say that he should be in based simply on the fact that his presence kept Mark Pike in the NFL for more years than he's was probably entitled. When someone tried to take Tasker out of the play by triple blocking him, who made the tackle? Pike! It was really ridiculous. His initials stand for Special Teams for cryin' out loud! I'm biased, though. He won't get in though. Most of the writers that vote know less about football than Michael Lewis, the author of "The Blind Side". All of them know less than Lori. BTW, Steely Dan... I remember that Dallas ST coach (name escapes me) saying that both Tasker and Bill Bates should make the HOF based on how they changed field position. When thinking of Tasker, the play that first comes to my mind is when he dumped Tim Brown on a punt return with a perfectly timed shoe-string tackle. Brown was on his butt looking around and when he spotted Tasker he pointed at him, smiled, and shook his head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOKBILLS Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 http://myespn.go.com/blogs/afceast/0-1-15/...-in-Canton.html I'd vote yes, but I think it will be tough for him to get in. Your thoughts? I definitely think Tasker is deserving of The Hall...The only problem is I feel Dre is more deserving...And the crazy way the politics run on getting in nowadays I wonder how the heck Tasker is going to get his due when Dre can't even get in yet?... All this HOF talk does is frustrate the hell out of Me to be honest...Last Year during the voting process Rod Woodson was doing his normal gig on NFL Network and they were listing the Finalists...Andre Reed's name was mentioned and Woodson says right away "Andre Reed's not in the HOF yet? I thought He was in already." Woodson went on to say that without question Dre is deserving of the HOF nod...Now here is a soon-to-be 1st Ballot HOF CB who was Dre's contemporary...One of the All Time best Players at his Position in NFL history, a guy who had to cover Andre Reed from time to time, and He thinks it's a no brainer... But instead Dre has to sit back and wait because a deserving Art Monk was not in yet? And so on, and so on...Makes Me do this... ...every day... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori Posted July 24, 2008 Author Share Posted July 24, 2008 Lori, your reputation just went two notches. You're agreeing with anything ESPN (any any mainstream) media says. You know, it would help me understand your thought better if you qualified "notches" with "up" or "down" ... Tim Graham's a good writer, whether he works for the Evil Empire or not. I definitely think Tasker is deserving of The Hall...The only problem is I feel Dre is more deserving...And the crazy way the politics run on getting in nowadays I wonder how the heck Tasker is going to get his due when Dre can't even get in yet?... All this HOF talk does is frustrate the hell out of Me to be honest...Last Year during the voting process Rod Woodson was doing his normal gig on NFL Network and they were listing the Finalists...Andre Reed's name was mentioned and Woodson says right away "Andre Reed's not in the HOF yet? I thought He was in already." Woodson went on to say that without question Dre is deserving of the HOF nod...Now here is a soon-to-be 1st Ballot HOF CB who was Dre's contemporary...One of the All Time best Players at his Position in NFL history, a guy who had to cover Andre Reed from time to time, and He thinks it's a no brainer... But instead Dre has to sit back and wait because a deserving Art Monk was not in yet? And so on, and so on...Makes Me do this... ...every day... Andre has competition at WR, and it will only get more difficult for him as the West Coast Offense players -- and their inflated stats -- become eligible. Tasker? There's no history with which to compare him. Before he came along, nobody ever tried some of the things he did. As others have noted, the league made up new rules to stop him, and they created a position for him in the Pro Bowl. HOF voter Ira Miller uses this benchmark to judge prospective enshrinees: can you write the history of the game without him? In Tasker's case, the answer is no. That should be all anyone needs to cast a ballot in his favor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 You know, it would help me understand your thought better if you qualified "notches" with "up" or "down" ...Tim Graham's a good writer, whether he works for the Evil Empire or not. Andre has competition at WR, and it will only get more difficult for him as the West Coast Offense players -- and their inflated stats -- become eligible. Tasker? There's no history with which to compare him. Before he came along, nobody ever tried some of the things he did. As others have noted, the league made up new rules to stop him, and they created a position for him in the Pro Bowl. HOF voter Ira Miller uses this benchmark to judge prospective enshrinees: can you write the history of the game without him? In Tasker's case, the answer is no. That should be all anyone needs to cast a ballot in his favor. Exactly!!! Ira Izzo the Pets STer on Tasker: Izzo is a star in his own right, a two-time Pro Bowler who is regarded as one of the elite special teamers in the league. And despite collision after collision, week after week, Izzo has managed to stay healthy. The Patriots are in Buffalo today for a division matchup with the Bills, and when Izzo makes the trip to Orchard Park, N.Y., he often thinks about the man he's idolized since 1996, when he came into the league as a rookie with the Miami Dolphins: Steve Tasker. "A guy like Steve Tasker belongs in the Hall of Fame," said Izzo, who has four special teams tackles in two games. "A guy like a Bill Bates, who really was the first big-name special teams guy, he had a wonderful career and potentially he could be in the Hall. One guy I think just made a big difference in games was Tasker. When I came into the league, he was still playing at a high level, and if anyone should be in, he should be." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loyal2dagame Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 cris friggin carter!!!!!!!! cris friggin carter?????? cris friggin carter#$#$%^% one damn year of being eligable and they make a big deal about cris carter????? please..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justnzane Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 cris friggin carter!!!!!!!!cris friggin carter?????? cris friggin carter#$#$%^% one damn year of being eligable and they make a big deal about cris carter????? please..... agreed, his stats were overinflated IMO because he was the only good Minnesota receiver for years, and he lasted a long time. Personally, I think Carter eventually belongs in, but Monk does not because his numbers were strictly for longevity. If Art Monk makes it in, you can make a case for Vinny Testaverde to be in as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsWatch Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 I think it greatly has to do with reputation of special teams as leftovers by sports writers. Since most of the voters never played the game they have no idea how hard it was for Steve to do what he did year after year. I'd love it if PHoF votes were public. I am sure there are a few voters who praised him but are not supporting him in votes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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