Several Steelers named as part of Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2025
CANTON, Ohio (KDKA) - Wednesday was the day the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced its 2025 modern-era nominees and once again, plenty of Steelers made the list.
With a total of 167 players being eligible, eight Steelers were among the latest group.
They included kicker Gary Anderson, linebacker James Farrior, nose tackle Casey Hampton, linebacker James Harrison, fullback John Kuhn, defensive back Allen Rossum, linebacker Mike Vrabel, and wide receiver Hines Ward.
This is just an early step in the process of determining the Hall of Fame's class of 2025. The list will be reduced to 25 in November. After that, the full 50-member Pro Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee will select 15 modern-era players, three senior finalists, a coach finalist, and a contributor finalist.
All that said - there is no set number for inductee classes. The only bylaw is that between four and eight new people will be enshrined.
Anderson spent 13 seasons with the Steelers between 1982 and 1994 and had a field goal percentage of 78.2%, and made 99% of his extra-point attempts. For his career, he had a field goal percentage of 80.1% and an extra point attempt percentage of 99.2%.
Farrior was with the Steelers for 10 years, starting 154 games, and was the model of consistency. His best year came in 2004 when he was named to the Pro Bowl and was first-team All-Pro. Farrior recorded four interceptions, with one of them going for a touchdown, recovered three fumbles, recorded three sacks, and had 95 combined tackles.
Hampton spent his full career with the Steelers from 2001 until 2012. Starting 164 games, the nose tackle recorded nine sacks, 398 combined tackles, and 231 solo tackles. Hampton was also a five-time Pro Bowler and owns one of the best nicknames in professional sports - The Big Snack.
A man who needs no introduction but was feared throughout his career - James Harrison. The man they call Deebo spent 14 years with the Steelers, starting 107 games and putting up a stat line that puts him among some of the best linebackers in history. He would record 775 combined tackles, 564 solo tackles, 80.5 sacks, and maybe the most famous play in Super Bowl history - picking off Kurt Warner in the endzone during Super Bowl 43 and returning it for a touchdown.
Fullback John Kuhn was undrafted coming into the NFL and only spent one season with the Steelers in 2006 but went on to have a productive career with the Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints. He would score 19 rushing touchdowns and 9 receiving touchdowns and had a career 1,300 yards from scrimmage.
Known more for his kick returning, Allen Rossum spent just one year with the Steelers in 2007, scoring one touchdown on a kick return, but throughout several seasons in the NFL, he scored three touchdowns on punt returns and five touchdowns on kick returns from 1998 and 2009. He also spent time with the Atlanta Falcons, Green Bay Packers, Philadelphia Eagles, San Francisco 49ers, and Dallas Cowboys.
Linebacker Mike Vrabel began his career in Pittsburgh, getting drafted 91st overall in 1997. While he never started any games with the Steelers, he did record 56 combined tackles, 44 solo tackles, and seven sacks. Across his career with the Steelers, New England Patriots, and Kansas City Chiefs, he would go on to start 140 games, record 11 interceptions, one touchdown, 762 combined tackles, and 529 solo tackles.
Last and certainly not least is the man known for his smile and his tenacity - wide receiver Hines Ward.
Drafted by the Steelers 92nd overall in 1998, he would spend his whole career in Pittsburgh recording 1,000 receptions for 12,083 yards, 85 touchdowns, and 12.1 yards per reception across those 14 years.
Ward was also named Super Bowl 40 MVP, was a four-time Pro Bowler, and became known as one of the best blocking receivers in the modern era.
