Die diesjährige Liste mit den für die Hall of Fame-Nominierten umfasst 108 Namen und ist damit etwas länger als letztes Jahr, als 94 Personen nominiert waren. Die letzte Woche in Canton, Ohio, präsentierte Liste wird nun in einem ersten Schritt durch die Hall of Fame-Elektoren auf 25 Personen reduziert, in einem zweiten dann auf 15 Namen. Zu diesen 15 Finalisten stossen dann mit den vom Seniors Commitee nominierten Robert Brazile und Jerry Kramer sowie dem vom Contributors Commitee nominierten Bobby Beathard drei weitere Kandidaten für die Ruhmeshalle.

Der letzte Schritt des Wahlprozesses findet dann einen Tag vor der Super Bowl statt, diesesmal am 3. Februar 2018. An diesem Tag werden die 48 Mitglieder des Board of Selectors an ihrer Tagung in Minneapolis aus dem Kreis der letzten 18 Nominierten maximal acht Personen auswählen, welche dann die Hall of Fame-Class of 2017 bilden. Um in die Hall of Fame aufgenommen zu werden, benötigt ein Nominierter die Zustimmung von 80 Prozent der Elektoren (39 von 48 Stimmen). Die Gewählten werden wie üblich am gleichen Abend im Rahmen der grossen Gala «NFL Honors», an welcher die jährlichen Awards an Spieler und Coaches verliehen werden, präsentiert. Die formelle Aufnahme findet dann Anfang August 2018 in Canton statt.

Elf der Nominierten sind zum ersten Mal wählbar. Unter diesen sticht vor allem ein Name hervor: Ray Lewis, der Linebacker, der 17 Saisons für die Baltimore Ravens gespielt hat, mit dem Team zwei Super Bowl-Titel feiern konnte und über Jahre eines der prägendsten Gesichter der NFL war. Seine Wahl im ersten Anlauf scheint eigentlich nur eine Formsache. Ebenfalls erstmals dabei ist Wide Receiver Randy Moss, der bezüglich Receiving-Yards an dritter, bezüglich Receiving-Touchdowns an dritter Stelle der ewigen Bestenliste steht. Aber gerade bei den Wide Receivern ist das Feld der Kandidaten sehr breit, warten hier doch mit Terrell Owens oder Hines Ward andere würdige Kandidaten auf eine Aufnahme. Auf der Defense-Seite sind mit Defensive Tackle Richard Seymour, Linebacker Brian Urlacher und Cornerback Ronde Barber ebenfalls drei prominente Namen neu vertreten. Und bei den Coaches warten gleich fünf Super Bowl-Head Coaches weiterhin auf eine Wahl in die Ruhmeshalle – alles in allem eine harte Konkurrenz.

Die Nominierten

Quarterbacks
Randall Cunningham – Nevada-Las Vegas – 1985-1995 Philadelphia Eagles, 1997-1999 Minnesota Vikings, 2000 Dallas Cowboys, 2001 Baltimore Ravens
Rich Gannon – Delaware – 1987-1992 Minnesota Vikings, 1993 Washington Redskins, 1995-1998 Kansas City Chiefs, 1999-2004 Oakland Raiders
Donovan McNabb – Syracuse – 1999-2009 Philadelphia Eagles, 2010 Washington Redskins, 2011 Minnesota Vikings
Steve McNair – Alcorn State – 1995-2005 Houston Oilers/Tennessee Oilers/Tennessee Titans, 2006-2007 Baltimore Ravens
Phil Simms – Morehead State – 1979-1993 New York Giants

Running Backs
Tiki Barber – Virginia – 1997-2006 New York Giants
Earnest Byner – East Carolina – 1984-1988 Cleveland Browns, 1989-1993 Washington Redskins, 1994-1995 Cleveland Browns, 1996-1997 Baltimore Ravens
Roger Craig – Nebraska – 1983-1990 San Francisco 49ers, 1991 Los Angeles Raiders, 1992-1993 Minnesota Vikings
Corey Dillon – Washington – 1997-2003 Cincinnati Bengals, 2004-2006 New England Patriots
Eddie George – Ohio State – 1996-2003 Houston Oilers/Tennessee Oilers/Tennessee Titans, 2004 Dallas Cowboys
Edgerrin James – Miami (FL) – 1999-2005 Indianapolis Colts, 2006-2008 Arzona Cardinals, 2009 Seattle Seahawks
Lorenzo Neal (FB) – Fresno State – 1993-1995 New Orleans Saints, 1997 New York Jets, 1998 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1999-2000 Tennessee Titans, 2001-2002 Cincinnati Bengals, 2003-2007 San Diego Chargers, 2008 Baltimore Ravens
Fred Taylor – Florida – 1998-2008 Jacksonville Jaguars, 2009-2010 New England Patriots
Herschel Walker (KR) – Georgia – 1983-1985 New Jersey Generals (USFL), 1986-1989 Dallas Cowboys, 1989-1991 Minnesota Vikings, 1992-1994 Philadelphia Eagles, 1995 New York Giants, 1996-1997 Dallas Cowboys
Ricky Watters – Notre Dame – 1992-1994 San Francisco 49ers, 1995-1997 Philadelphia Eagles, 1998-2001 Seattle Seahawks

Wide Receivers
Isaac Bruce – Memphis State – 1994-2007 Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams, 2008-2009 San Francisco 49ers
Donald Driver – Alcorn State – 1999-2012 Green Bay Packers
Henry Ellard (PR) – Fresno State – 1983-1993 Los Angeles Rams, 1994-1998 Washington Redskins, 1998 New England Patriots
Tory Holt – North Carolina State – 1999-2008 St. Louis Rams, 2009 Jacksonville Jaguars
Chad Johnson – Santa Monica College, Oregon State – 2011-2010 Cincinnati Bengals, 2011 New England Patriots, 2014-2015 Montreal Allouettes (CFL)
Randy Moss – Marshall – 1998-2004 Minnesota Vikings, 2005-2006 Oakland Raiders, 2007-2010 New England Patriots, 2010 Minnesota Vikings, 2010 Tennessee Titans, 2012 San Francisco 49ers
Terrell Owens – Tennessee-Chattanooga – 1996-2003 San Francisco 49ers, 2004-2005 Philadelphia Eagles, 2006-2008 Dallas Cowboys, 2009 Buffalo Bills, 2010 Cincinnati Bengals
Sterling Sharpe – South Carolina – 1988-1994 Green Bay Packers
Jimmy Smith – Jackson State – 1992-1993 Dallas Cowboys, 1995-2005 Jacksonville Jaguars
Rod Smith – Missouri Southern State – 1994-2007 Denver Broncos
Steve Smith – Southern California – 2007-2010 New York Giants, 2011 Philadelphia Eagles, 2012 St. Louis Rams
John Taylor – Delaware State – 1987-1995 San Francisco 49ers
Hines Ward – Georgia – 1998-2011 Pittsburgh Steelers

Tight Ends
Mark Bavaro – Notre Dame – 1985-1990 New York Giants, 1992 Cleveland Browns, 1993-1994 Philadelphia Eagles
Ben Coats – Livingstone – 1991-1999 New England Patriots, 2000 Baltimore Ravens
Ferrell Edmunds – Maryland – 1988-1992 Miami Dolphins, 1993-1994 Seattle Seahawks
Jay Novacek – Wyoming – 1985-1989 St. Louis/Phoenix Cardinals, 1990-1996 Dallas Cowboys

Offensive Linemen
Willie Anderson (T) – Auburn – 1996-2007 Cincinnati Bengals, 2008 Baltimore Ravens
Matt Birk (C) – Harvard – 1998-2008 Minnesota Vikings, 2009-2012 Baltimore Ravens
Tony Boselli (T) – Southern California – 1995-2001 Jacksonville Jaguars
Lomas Brown (T) – Florida – 1985-1995 Detroit Lions, 1996-1998 Arizona Cardinals, 199 Cleveland Browns, 2000-2001 New York Giants, 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Ruben Brown (G) – Pittsburgh – 1995-2003 Buffalo Bills, 2004-2007 Chicago Bears
Ray Donaldson (C) – Georgia – 1980-1992 Baltimore Colts/Indianapolis Colts, 1993-1994 Seattle Seahawks, 1995-1996 Dallas Cowboys
Alan Faneca (G) – Louisiana State – 1998-2007 Pittsburgh Steelers, 2008-2009 New York Jets, 2010 Arizona Cardinals
Bill Fralic (G) – Pittsburgh – 1985-1992 Atlanta Falcons, 1993 Detroit Lions
Jay Hilgenberg (C/G) – Iowa – 1981-1991 Chicago Bears, 1992 Cleveland Browns, 1993 New Orleans Saints
Chris Hinton (G/T) – Northwestern – 1983-1989 Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts, 1990-1993 Atlanta Falcons, 1994-1995 Minnesota Vikings
Kent Hull (C) – Mississippi State – 1983-1985 New Jersey Generals (USFL), 1986-1996 Buffalo Bills
Steve Hutchinson (G) – Michigan – 2001-2005 Seattle Seahawks, 2006-2011 Minnesota Vikings, 2012 Tennessee Titans
Joe Jacoby (T) – Louisville – 1981-1993 Washington Redskins
Mike Kenn (T) – Michigan – 1978-1994 Atlanta Falcons
Kevin Mawae (C/G) – Louisiana State – 1994-1997 Seattle Seahawks, 1998-2005 New York Jets, 2006-2009 Tennessee Titans
Tom Nalen (C) – Boston College – 1994-2007 Denver Broncos
Nate Newton (G) – Florida A&M – 1986-1998 Dallas Cowboys, 1999 Carolina Panthers
Bart Oates (C) – Brigham Young – 1983-1985 Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars (USFL), 1985-1993 New York Giants, 1994-1995 San Francisco 49ers
Jeff Saturday (C) – North Carolina – 1999-2011 Indianapolis Colts, 2012 Green Bay Packers
Richmond Webb (T) – Texas A&M – 1990-2000 Miami Dolphins, 2001-2002 Cincinnati Bengals
Steve Wisniewski (G) – Penn State – 1989-2001 Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders

Defensive Linemen
La’Roi Glover (DT/NT) – San Diego State – 1996 Oakland Raiders, 1997-2001 New Orleans Saints, 2002-2005 Dallas Cowboys, 2006-2008 St. Louis Rams
Leonard Marshall (DE/DT) – Louisiana State – 1983-1992 New York Giants, 1993 New York Jets, 1994 Washington Redskins
Keith Millard (DT/NT/DE) – Washington State – 1985 Jacksonville Bulls (USFL), 1985-1991 Minnesota Vikings, 1992 Seattle Seahawks, 1992 Green Bay Packers, 1993 Philadelphia Eagles
Leslie O’Neal (DE) – Oklahoma State – 1986-1995 San Diego Chargers, 1996-1997 St. Louis Rams, 1998-1999 Kansas City Chiefs
Michael Dean Perry (DT) – Clemson – 1989-1994 Cleveland Browns, 1995-1997 Denver Broncos, 1997 Kansas City Chiefs
Simeon Rice (DE) – Illinois – 1996-2000 Arizona Cardinals, 2001-2006 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2007 Denver Broncos, 2007 Indianapolis Colts, 2009 New York Sentinels (UFL)
Richard Seymour (DE) – Georgia – 2001-2008 New England Patriots, 2009-2012 Oakland Raiders
Neil Smith (DE) – Nebraska – 1988-1996 Kansas City Chiefs, 1997-1999 Denver Broncos, 2000 San Diego Chargers
Greg Townsend (DE) – Texas Christian – 1983-1993 Los Angeles Raiders, 1994 Philadelphia Eagles, 1997 Oakland Raiders
Kyle Vanden Bosch (DE) – Nebraska – 2001-2004 Arizona Cardinals, 2005-2009 Tennessee Titans, 2010-2012 Detroit Lions
Bryant Young (DT) – Notre Dame – 1994-2007 San Francisco 49ers

Linebackers
Carl Banks – Michigan State – 1984-1992 New York Giants, 1993 Washington Redskins, 1994-1995 Cleveland Browns
Cornelius Bennett – Alabama – 1987-1995 Buffalo Bills, 1996-1998 Atlanta Falcons, 1999-2000 Indianapolis Colts
Tedy Bruschi – Arizona – 1996-2008 New England Patriots
Seth Joyner – Texas-El Paso – 1986-1993 Philadelphia Eagles, 1994-1996 Arizona Cardinals, 1997 Green Bay Packers, 1998 Denver Broncos
Ray Lewis – Miami (FL) – 1996-2012 Baltimore Ravens
Greg Lloyd – Fort Valley State – 1988-1997 Pittsburgh Steelers, 1998 Carolina Panthers
Wilber Marshall – Florida – 1984-1987 Chicago Bears, 1988-1992 Washington Redskins, 1993 Houston Oilers, 1994 Arizona Cardinals, 1995 New York Jets
Clay Matthews – Southern California – 1978-1993 Cleveland Browns, 1994-1996 Atlanta Falcons
Willie McGinest (DE) – Southern California – 1994-2005 New England Patriots, 2006-2008 Cleveland Browns
Karl Mecklenburg – Augustana (SD), Minnesota – 1983-1994 Denver Broncos
Sam Mills – Montclair State (NJ) – 1986-1994 New Orleans Saints, 1995-1997 Carolina Panthers
Joey Porter – Colorado State – 1999-2006 Pittsburgh Steelers, 2007-2009 Miami Dolphins, 2010-2011 Arizona Cardinals
Darryl Talley – West Virginia – 1983-1994 Buffalo Bills, 1995 Atlanta Falcons, 1996 Minnesota Vikings
Zach Thomas – Texas Tech – 1996-2007 Miami Dolphins, 2008 Dallas Cowboys
Brian Urlacher – New Mexico – 2000-2012 Chicago Bears

Defensive Backs
Eric Allen (CB) – Arizona State – 1988-1994 Philadelphia Eagles, 1995-1997 New Orleans Saints, 1998-2001 Oakland Raiders
Steve Atwater (S) – Arkansas – 1989-1998 Denver Broncos, 1999 New York Jets
Ronde Barber (CB/S) – Virginia – 1997-2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
LeRoy Butler (S) – Florida State – 1990-2001 Green Bay Packers
Brian Dawkins (S) – Clemson – 1996-2008 Philadelphia Eagles, 2009-2011 Denver Broncos
Rodney Harrison (S) – Western Illinois – 1994-2002 San Diego Chargers, 2003-2008 New England Patriots
Ty Law (CB) – Michigan – 1995-2004 New England Patriots, 2005 New York Jets, 2006-2007 Kansas City Chiefs, 2008 New York Jets, 2009 Denver Broncos
Albert Lewis (CB) – Grambling State – 1983-1993 Kansas City Chiefs, 1994-1998 Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders
John Lynch (S) – Stanford – 1993-2003 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2004-2007 Denver Broncos
Dennis Smith (S) – Southern California – 1981-1994 Denver Broncos
Everson Walls (CB) – Grambling State – 1981-1989 Dallas Cowboys, 1990-1992 New York Giants, 1992-1993 Cleveland Browns
Darren Woodson (S) – Arizona State – 1992-2004 Dallas Cowboys

Special Teams-Spieler
Brian Mitchell (RB) – Louisiana-Lafayette – 1990-1999 Washington Redskins, 2000-2002 Philadelphia Eagles, 2003 New York Giants
Steve Tasker (WR) – Dodge City CC (KS), Northwestern – 1985-1986 Houston Oilers, 1986-1997 Buffalo Bills

Coaches
Don Coryell – Washington – 1973-1977 St. Louis Cardinals (HC), 1978-1986 San Diego Chargers (HC)
Bill Cowher – North Carolina State – 1985-1988 Cleveland Browns, 1989-1991 Kansas City Chiefs, 1992-2006 Pittsburgh Steelers (HC)
Tom Flores – Pacific – 1971 Buffalo Bills, 1972-1987 Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders (1979-1987 HC), 1992-1994 Seattle Seahawks
Mike Holmgren – Southern California – 1986-1991 San Francisco 49ers, 1992-1998 Green Bay Packers (HC), 1999-2008 Seattle Seahawks (HC)
Jimmy Johnson – Arkansas – 1989-1993 Dallas Cowboys (HC), 1996-1999 Miami Dolphins (HC)
Chuck Knox – Juniata College (PA) – 1963-1966 New York Jets, 1967-1972 Detroit Lions, 1973-1977 Los Angeles Rams (HC), 1978-1982 Buffalo Bills (HC), 1983-1991 Seattle Seahawks (HC), 1992-1994 Los Angeles Rams (HC)
Buddy Parker – Centenary College (LA) – 1945-1949 Chicago Cardinals (1949 HC), 1951-1956 Detroit Lions (HC), 1957-1964 Pittsburgh Steelers (HC)
Richie Petitbon – Tulane – 1974-1977 Houston Oilers, 1978-1993 Washington Redskins (1993 HC)
Dan Reeves – South Carolina – 1974-1980 Dallas Cowboys, 1981-1992 Denver Broncos (HC), 1993-1996 New York Giants (HC), 1997-2003 Atlanta Falcons (HC)
Marty Schottenheimer – Pittsburgh – 1974 Portland Storm (WFL), 1975-1977 New York Giants, 1978-1979 Detroit Lioins, 1980-1988 Cleveland Browns (1948-1988 HC), 1989-1998 Kansas City Chiefs (HC), 2001 Washington Redskins (HC), 2002-2006 San Diego Chargers (HC)
Clark Shaugnessy – Minnesota – 1940 Chicago Bears, 1948-1949 Los Angeles Rams (HC), 1951-1962 Chicago Bears
Dick Vermeil – San Jose State – 1969, 1971-1973 Los Angeles Rams, 1976-1982 Philadelphia Eagles (HC), 1997-1999 St. Louis Rams (HC), 2001-2005 Kansas City Chiefs (HC)

Nominiert durch das Senior Committee
Robert Brazile (LB) – Jackson State – 1975-1984 Houston Oilers
Jerry Kramer (G) – Idaho – 1958-1968 Green Bay Packers

Nominiert durch das Contributor Committee
Bobby Beathard (Manager) – Cal Poly San Luis Obispo – 1978-1989 Washington Redskins, 1990-2000 San Diego Chargers