Joe Starkey was surprised to hear something about the Pro Football Hall of Fame he didn’t know about before.
Starkey was under the impression that a player’s eligibility was based just on stats and performance on the field, and that any locker room or off-field issues weren’t factored in.
Gary Myers with Sports Illustrated tells Starkey that the Hall of Fame told him and other voters that they could factor in locker room behavior, but not off the field.
“In my mind, the locker room counts now because they told us it does, but if the guy got arrested 25 times, but he’s a Hall of Fame talent, we’ve been told not to consider that,” said Myers.
He says that why Terrell Owes took three years to get into Canton.
“They said it’s okay to consider some of the shenanigans that he pulled in the locker room, ripping his teammates,” said Myers about Owens.
When the time comes for the Hall of Fame to consider Antonio Brown, he’s on field blowups and locker room issues should be considered, but not any legal issues or investigations outside of football.
Starkey says factoring in someone’s locker room could “open up a whole can of worms” with the selection process.
But Myers says Owens is the only one that has been considered for his locker room behavior and Antonio Brown will likely be the next.