Who Votes in the NFL Hall of Fame?

The National Football League Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football. As of 2017, there are a total of 310 members of the Hall of Fame. Learn more about who votes for the NFL Hall of Fame.

The Selection Process

The National Football League Hall of Fame is the highest honor that a football player can achieve. To be inducted, a player must first be nominated by a member of the Hall of Fame’s Selection Committee. The Selection Committee is made up of media members who have covered the NFL for at least 25 years.

The Selection Committee

The Selection Committee is a group of 26 media members who are tasked with the important job of selecting which former NFL players, coaches and contributors will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The committee meets once a year, typically in late May or early June, to discuss and vote on the inductees for that year’s class.

The Selection Committee is made up of 25 members who each serve three-year terms. The terms are staggered so that a different five or six members rotate off the committee each year. In order to be eligible for a spot on the committee, one must have been involved in professional football in some capacity for at least 25 years.

The 26th member of the Selection Committee is selected by the Hall of Fame’s Board of Trustees and does not have to meet the 25-year eligibility requirement. This spot is typically filled by a former player or coach who has been active recently and can offer insights on modern players.

The Contributors Subcommittee

The Contributors Subcommittee is composed of the nine members of the Selection Committee who have the most experience in selecting players, and three members with significant contributions to professional football. The subcommittee meets in the spring to recommend two finalists to the full committee. A contributor is defined as an individual who has made outstanding contributions to professional football in capacities other than playing or coaching.

The Eligibility Rules

Before we discuss who votes in the NFL Hall of Fame, let’s go over the eligibility rules. To be eligible, a player must have been out of the game for at least five years. This waiting period is known as the “career period.” After the career period, a player is then eligible to be voted into the Hall of Fame. So, who votes in the NFL Hall of Fame?

Player Eligibility

Players are eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame five years after they retire from professional football. This waiting period was established in 1963 and shortened from the original time frame of ten years.

There are three ways that a player can be elected to the Hall of Fame:
-ById be selected by either the Hall of Fame’s Selection Committee or a newly created Centennial Slate committee.
-ById meeting the criteria for selection and then being nominated by at least eight members of the Selection Committee.
-ById being nominated by at least five members of the Selection Committee.

Coach Eligibility

Coaches and contributors become eligible three years after retirement. To be eligible, a coach or contributor must have been retired for at least three years. For any person who is not yet retired, the waiting period remains five years. This is why Bill Belichick, who has won more Super Bowls than any coach in NFL history, is not yet eligible for the Hall of Fame—he’s still an active coach. (He would become eligible in 2024, three years after he retires.)

There is no set number of coaches or contributors who can be elected in a given year—that’s up to the Selection Committee to decide. A maximum of eight coaches and two contributors can be elected in a single year.

The Voting Process

Every year, eligible voters from the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), the media, and fans all have the opportunity to vote for who they believe should be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. While every voter has their own process or criteria for who they believe is most deserving, there are certain guidelines that each voter must follow.

The Final Ballot

After the initial list of nominees is whittled down by a selection committee, the list of finalists is sent to the full body of eligible voters. To be eligible to vote, a person must have been a member of the media for at least 25 years. Because different media organizations have different standards for what constitutes “a football writer,” there is no one-size-fits-all answer to how many years someone must have been writing about football to be eligible to vote.

The board of selectors votes on individual ballots, with each voter casting a ballot for up to 10 candidates. A candidate needs to receive a minimum of 80 percent of the vote to be elected. If no one receives 80 percent of the vote, the candidate with the highest vote total is elected.

The Voting Procedure

The selection process for the Hall of Fame is a lengthy and detailed procedure that begins months before the actual vote takes place. It starts with the creation of a preliminary list of nominees, which is then whittled down to a smaller group of finalists. The finalists are then voted on by a group of more than 500 Hall of Fame voters.

To be eligible to vote for the Hall of Fame, a person must be a member of the media who has covered the NFL for at least ten years. The voter must also be active in covering the league at the time of their ballot.

The Results

The National Football League Hall of Fame is an American professional football museum. It is located in Canton, Ohio. Who votes in the NFL Hall of Fame? There are many people that have a say in who gets inducted into the National Football Hall of Fame.

The Announcement

In Canton, Ohio, the National Football League (NFL) announced their annual Hall of Fame results. The HOF Selection Committee meets the day before the big game to deliberate and vote on which players will be inducted into the Hall of Fame. The announcement is made during a nationally-televised broadcast on NFL Network.

This year’s class includes first-ballot inductees Peyton Manning, Charles Woodson, and Calvin Johnson. Manning is a two-time Super Bowl champion and was named Super Bowl MVP in both victories. He is also a five-time NFL MVP and was named first-team All-Pro seven times. Woodson is a nine-time Pro Bowler who was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2009. Johnson is widely considered one of the best wide receivers in NFL history, as he led the league in receiving yards four times and was named first-team All-Pro five times.

The rest of the class includes:
-Ed Reed: A safety who played for the Baltimore Ravens for 11 seasons. He was a nine-time Pro Bowler and was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2004.
-Tony Boselli: An offensive tackle who played for the Jacksonville Jaguars for seven seasons. He was a five-time Pro Bowler and was named first-team All-Pro three times.
-Kevin Mawae: A center who played for three teams over 16 seasons. He was an eight-time Pro Bowler and was named first-team All_Pro six times.