POTENTIAL 2014 PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME CANIDATES: RUNNING BACKS

In seven days, the pro football hall of fame will formally induct its newest members. And while I can't wait to see these men take their steps into immortality, I'm also looking towards next year. I'll be profiling fifty modern era candidates that could wind up wearing a gold jacket in 2014. Today, we'll be looking at the running backs.

* indicates first year of eligibility
** indicates former hall of fame finalist

 OTTIS ANDERSON

 1979-1986 St. Louis Cardinals, 1986-1992 New York Giants

Accomplishments: 2x Pro Bowl selection (1979-1980); 1st Team All-Pro (1980); AP Offensive Rookie of the Year (1979); AP Comeback Player of the Year (1989); 2x Super Bowl champion (1986, 1990); Super Bowl MVP (1990); 10,000 Rushing Yards Club

Pros: If John Riggins was the Diesel, then Ottis Anderson was that old truck that got a lot of mileage in its glory days, but could still get you to where you needed to go long after those days were over. Anderson began his career as the 1979 Offensive Rookie of the Year, barreling ass and scoring touchdowns like you'd expect from a pro. He capped his career off with a Comeback Player of the Year award and a Super Bowl MVP, all while running in career highs in touchdowns. Not bad for a running back in his thirties. Anderson's 10,273 rushing yards were the eighth most ever at the time of his retirement, where his 81 rushing touchdowns were ranked sixth on the all-time list.

Cons: Anderson had a strong start to his career and a memorable finish, but there was a stretch in the middle that wasn't much to brag about. Starting in about 1984, injuries and general ineffectiveness started adding up. He'd remain largely irrelevant for about five years, which is an eternity in the football world. His mid-career anonymity wasn't helped by the fact that he spent his prime years playing for a largely pedestrian and nationally overlooked  St. Louis Cardinals team. The Cardinals made the playoffs once during his stay and appeared on Monday Night Football all of four times. And in those big games early in his career, Anderson was either absent, or so ineffectual he might as well have been. On being traded to the Giants in 1986, Giants head coach Bill Parcells outright stated that Anderson's best days were behind him and he would be used only as a backup. Now obviously Anderson had a couple of productive years after that, but... damn!

Overall: Anderson has never been a finalist or even a semifinalist in the hall voting, and he's been eligible since 1998. You'd think a guy like this would get some looks for his story alone: a guy has a bunch of productive years, has a career slump, gets traded, is considered washed up, then has a career resurgence, culminating in a championship season where he plays an integral role in reaching those heights. He's Kurt Warner ten years before Kurt Warner was Kurt Warner. Now he could have a resurgence in support this year which could lead to a deserved, if late induction, and it's not like languishing in the votes for years and coming out of nowhere to finally get in isn't an unprecedented phenomena. But it seems like he would have been in by now if he was going to get in. I think he'll get in eventually... though he may have to hitch his ride on the veteran's committee to get it done.

HoF Projection: Slim Chance

SHAUN ALEXANDER*

2000-2007 Seattle Seahawks, 2008 Washington Redskins

Accomplishments: 3x Pro Bowl selection (2003-2005); 1st Team All-Pro (2005); NFL 2000s All-Decade Team (2nd Team); AP MVP (2005); AP Offensive Player of the Year (2005); 100 Rushing Touchdowns Club

Pros: Shaun Alexander could score. He had double digit rushing touchdowns five years in a row, which is insane. I did a little research on all-time great running backs and only found two that equaled or surpassed that total (LaDainian Tomlinson from 2001-2009 and Adrian Peterson from 2006-2012). He was this good from his second season in 2001 until 2005, when he had one of the greatest single seasons a running back has had in history. He rushed for 1,880 yards, scored 27 touchdowns (a single season record at the time), and guided the Seahawks to a team record 13 wins and the top seed in the NFC. The Seahawks went all the way to Super Bowl XL and Alexander was a crappy officiating crew away from being named MVP of the game. How can't he be a slam dunk hall of famer?

Cons: All those productive seasons from 2001-2005? It didn't hurt that the Seahawks had two hall of fame caliber offensive linemen in Walter Jones and Steve Hutchinson blocking for him. In fact, once Hutchinson left in free agency after the 2005 season, things started to go downhill. Fast. After 2005, Alexander never again rushed for more than 1,000 yards, never again scored double digit touchdowns, and injuries really began to hamper him. In fact, he was out of the game entirely after 2008, where he spent the year running for a measly 24 yards and starting zero games. That logs nine years on his career, and if I had to pin down what hall voters hate the most (besides Charles Harley), its modern candidates that didn't play for at least ten years.

Overall: Shaun Alexander was certainly great, I don't want to seem like I'm belittling him. 2005 was without question his best season, but he wasn't a one year wonder either. He was truly great and dominant for five years. Before or after those five years? Nothing special. Now because he was so dominant, even for as short a time as it was, he might still get consideration. And honestly, I wouldn't object to him making it in one day. But with so many strong candidates in their first year of eligibility, plus the sheer number of greats who haven't gotten the nod yet, he's probably going to wait a while, if he gets in at all. But at least he'll always have that 2005 season...

HoF Projection: Not This Year

TIKI BARBER

1997-2006 New York Giants

Accomplishments: 3x Pro Bowl selection (2004-2006); 1st Team All-Pro (2005); 10,000 Rushing Yards Club

Pros: Most players, regardless of their position, have their most productive seasons when they're younger. Running backs especially tail off when they're within hair-greying distance of their thirtieth birthdays. To expect a running back to have great seasons near the end of their careers would be pretty unreasonable. Then again, Tiki Barber is a rather unreasonable man. Barber's best seasons were his last three, equaling or surpassing previous career highs in rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, yards per attempt and yards per game. His prior seven seasons were good, some even great, but the fact that he was doing so well so late in his career, it's really a testament to how good he really was.

Cons: Tiki Barber is a notorious douche. I could rattle off a bunch of reasons for why that's the case, but the folks at Pro Football Talk already did it for me. Beyond his general unpleasantness as a human being, Barber was also fairly notorious for fumbling problems during Jim Fassel's tenure as Giants head coach (a.k.a., most of his career). Tom Coughlin is just about universally recognized for fixing Barber's shaky hands and turning him into the great running back he was in his last years. Barber thanked Coughlin by calling his coaching ability into question as a member of the media after he retired. But that's kind of circling back to the first point, isn't it?

Overall: Barber played ten years, satisfying the unwritten rule for hall of fame candidacy from a tenure standpoint. If he had played even two more seasons, his numbers would likely be rivaling some all-time greats, plus he'd have a Super Bowl ring, which greatly matters to a player's voting stock. Ultimately his candidacy falls on the "what could have been" principle, which is great for an episode of Fringe, not so much when discussing who to put in a hall of fame. He may get some recognition at some point, but he'll also likely alienate someone before they get the chance to talk him up.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

JEROME BETTIS**

1993-1995 Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams, 1996-2005 Pittsburgh Steelers

Accomplishments: 6x Pro Bowl selection (1993-1994, 1996-1997, 2001, 2004); 2x 1st Team All-Pro (1993, 1996); AP Offensive Rookie of the Year (1993); AP Comeback Player of the Year (1996); Super Bowl champion (2005); 10,000 Rushing Yards Club (6th All-Time); 10th All-Time Rushing Touchdowns

Pros: Bettis put up big numbers in his career, even though he rarely put up big numbers in single seasons. He retired with the fifth most rushing yards in NFL history and the eighth most rushing touchdowns ever. He was very durable, continuing to be productive into the twilight of his career.

Cons: One of the biggest cons is how hard it is to find pros about him. It's weird, Bettis was great, you'd be crazy to not say that, but man are his stats a mishmash of perfectly acceptable and not much else. He'd have a year or two of dominance, but he never had long stretches.

Overall: Bettis was first up for induction in 2011, along with Marshall Faulk and Curtis Martin. All three made the finals. Faulk got the nod. The next year, Bettis and Martin returned to the finals. Martin got the nod this time. Faulk is one of the best running backs of all time, Martin was quietly one of the most prolific running backs of all time. Strong candidates for sure. Last year Bettis got to the finals for a third time, this time without any strong competition from other running backs. He was again denied. And that may be the most damning evidence. Bettis was a great running back, but hall of fame worthy? That's the real question. There's clearly support for him; you don't make it to the final fifteen names three years in a row if you're some schlub. His final stats are indeed impressive and making the hall of fame isn't an offensive thought. But he's clearly on the "I'll vote for him if there aren't any stronger candidates" list.

HoF Projection: Maybe

ROGER CRAIG**

1983-1990 San Francisco 49ers, 1991 Los Angeles Raiders, 1992-1993 Minnesota Vikings

Accomplishments: 4x Pro Bowl selection (1985, 1987-1989); 1st Team All-Pro (1988); NFL 1980s All-Decade Team (2nd Team); AP Offensive Player of the Year (1988)

Pros: Roger Craig was Marshall Faulk, but in the 80s. Craig was the guy Joe Montana handed the ball off to, but Craig did things that no other running back had ever done at the time. Craig was also a key receiving threat, catching 70 or more passes four times. He was also the first running back to rush for over 1,000 yards and gain 1,000 receiving yards in the same season. So yeah, he was really good. And if you give credence to Pro Football Reference's approximate value stat, Craig had double digit AV seven years in a row (hint: that's good).

Cons: The fact that Craig was great at carrying the football and catching it may have unknowingly been his undoing. Craig never really excelled at either, but was good at both. Hence his numbers tended to split the difference with his rushing yards cutting into his receiving yards, and visa versa. The Marshall Faulk comparisons also don't do him justice in the long run, as Faulk has almost twice as many rushing touchdowns and receiving touchdowns as Craig.

Overall: Craig was an integral part to the great 49ers teams of the 80s; had he not been on those teams, they wouldn't have been quite as explosive as they were. His numbers show that the offense really benefited from his presence, giving defenses fits by making the 49ers a well balanced attack with a good run game and explosive passing game. Like Ottis Anderson, he should've been inducted years ago. He's received more support than Anderson; Craig was a finalist in 2010, and he's made it to the semifinals three times in four years. Who knows, he might get in this year. Or not. Eh, who knows?

HoF Projection: Maybe

TERRELL DAVIS**

1995-2001 Denver Broncos

Accomplishments: 3x Pro Bowl selection (1996-1998); 3x 1st Team All-Pro (1996-1998); NFL 1990s All-Decade Team (2nd Team); AP MVP (1998); 2x AP Offensive Player of the Year (1996, 1998); 2x Super Bowl champion (1997-1998); Super Bowl MVP (1997)

Pros: Terrell Davis probably had the most dominant three year run any running has ever had from 1996-1998. He led the league in rushing in 1998, becoming the 4th running back to ever rush for more than 2,000 yards (2,008 for the record). He led the league in rushing touchdowns in 1997 and 1998 (15 and 21, respectively). Record numbers, numerous awards, everything's going his way. What could possibly go wrong?

Cons: Early in the 1999 season, Terrell Davis destroyed his knee making a routine tackle. He was lost for the year, and never again reached the heights he had reached pre-injury. That's literally the only con; if he didn't get hurt, he'd be in the hall by now.

Overall: Even with his career lasting only seven years and only being productive for four of them, Davis has been a finalist every year he's been eligible for hall of fame consideration (six years and running). While he's never quite made the leap from finalist to immortal, Davis has a strong chance of making it every year. The comparisons to Shaun Alexander are inevitable; Alexander had a very small window of success and production, played behind a great offensive line, won an MVP award, and retired early due to injuries. All those details could be used to describe Davis. Unlike Alexander, Davis was a very physical runner and was an integral part of two Super Bowl winning teams. Simply put, without Davis, the Broncos don't win both of those Super Bowls. Hell, they might not even be able to reach them. With John Elway clearly in his twilight years, Davis put the Broncos on his back and ran them into contention and history. He's the main reason they won as much as they did and got the rings they deserved. And it seems the hall has recognized that fact, short career or no. I'd like to think that his induction is only a matter of time.

HoF Projection: Pretty Good

WARRICK DUNN*

1997-2001, 2008 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2002-2007 Atlanta Falcons

Accomplishments: 3x Pro Bowl selection (1997, 2000, 2005); AP Offensive Rookie of the Year (1997); 10,000 Rushing Yards Club

Pros: Like Jerome Bettis, Warrick Dunn was very durable, having productive seasons into his thirties. Taking his approximate value stats into account, Dunn had seven seasons where he produced double digit AV. The teams he was on didn't have great offenses otherwise, but he was a valuable weapon for his teams and was the greatest reason for their successes on that side of the ball. Also, he was and still is one of the classiest players to ever strap on a helmet.

Cons: Also like Bettis, Dunn doesn't really assert himself in the year by year stats, except for approximate value. And even then, you could argue that Dunn was a good piece on largely mediocre offenses, not necessarily someone who was a game breaker.

Overall: Dunn had a good career, but he's not really of hall of fame consideration to me. Especially compared to his fellow running backs. And let's not get started where he stacks with other positions.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

One group down, six more to go. Tomorrow we'll take a look at the wide receivers.