Will Randy Moss wind up in Canton next summer?
Announced Tuesday, the modern-era nominees for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2018 is made up of 108 players and coaches, including 11 first-year eligible players.
Moss, the former Vikings and Patriots star wideout, leads a list of newly eligible players that also features legendary Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis, Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher and Buccaneers defensive back Ronde Barber.
This year's roster of nominees features 53 offensive players, 38 defensive players, five special teamers and 12 coaches. The list of modern-era nominees will be reduced to 25 semifinalists in November and, subsequently, to 15 finalists in January.
Here's the list:
Quarterbacks (5): Randall Cunningham, Rich Gannon, Donovan McNabb, Steve McNair, Phil Simms
Running backs (10): Tiki Barber, Earnest Byner, Roger Craig, Corey Dillon, Eddie George, Edgerrin James, Lorenzo Neal, Fred Taylor, Herschel Walker (also KR), Ricky Watters
Wide receivers (13): *Isaac Bruce, Donald Driver, Henry Ellard (also PR), Torry Holt, Chad Johnson, Randy Moss, *Terrell Owens, Sterling Sharpe, Jimmy Smith, Rod Smith, Steve Smith (NYG), John Taylor, Hines Ward
Tight end (4): Mark Bavaro, Ben Coates, Ferrell Edmunds, Jay Novacek
Offensive linemen (21): Willie Anderson (T), Matt Birk (C), *Tony Boselli (T), Lomas Brown (T), Ruben Brown (G), Ray Donaldson (C), *Alan Faneca (G), Bill Fralic (G/T), Jay Hilgenberg (C), Chris Hinton (G/T), Kent Hull (C), Steve Hutchinson (G), *Joe Jacoby (T), Mike Kenn (T), *Kevin Mawae (C/G), Tom Nalen (C), Nate Newton (G), Bart Oates (C), Jeff Saturday (C), Richmond Webb (T), Steve Wisniewski (G)
Defensive linemen (11): La'Roi Glover (DT/NT), Leonard Marshall (DE/DT), Keith Millard (DT/NT/DE), Leslie O'Neal (DE), Michael Dean Perry (DT/DE), Simeon Rice (DE), Richard Seymour (DT), Neil Smith (DE), Greg Townsend (DE/NT/LB), Kyle Vanden Bosch (DE), Bryant Young (DT)
Linebackers (15): Carl Banks, Cornelius Bennett, Tedy Bruschi, Seth Joyner, Ray Lewis, Greg Lloyd, Wilber Marshall, Clay Matthews, Willie McGinest (also DE), Karl Mecklenburg, Sam Mills, Joey Porter, Darryl Talley, Zach Thomas, Brian Urlacher
Defensive backs (12): Eric Allen (CB), Steve Atwater (S), Ronde Barber (CB/S), LeRoy Butler (S), *Brian Dawkins (SS), Rodney Harrison (S), *Ty Law (CB), Albert Lewis (CB), *John Lynch (S), Dennis Smith (S), Everson Walls (CB), Darren Woodson (S)
Kickers/punter (3): Gary Anderson (K), Sean Landeta (P), Nick Lowery (K)
Special teams (2): Brian Mitchell (KR/PR also RB), Steve Tasker (ST also WR)
Coaches (12): *Don Coryell, Bill Cowher, Tom Flores, Mike Holmgren, Jimmy Johnson, Chuck Knox, Buddy Parker, Richie Petitbon, Dan Reeves, Marty Schottenheimer, Clark Shaughnessy, Dick Vermeil
Eighteen finalists will be presented to the full 48-member Pro Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee during its annual selection meeting on "Selection Saturday," the day before Super Bowl LII. The finalists will consist of 15 modern-era finalists, the recently named Senior Finalists, Robert Brazile and Jerry Kramer, and the 2018 Contributor Finalist, Bobby Beathard.
The Selection Committee will meet on Saturday, Feb. 3, 2018, in Minneapolis to elect the Class of 2018. While there is no set number for any class of enshrinees, the selection process by-laws provide that between four and eight new members will be selected.
The Senior Finalists and Contributor Finalist are voted "yes" or "no" for election at the annual selection meeting and must receive at least 80 percent support from the Committee to be elected. The Modern-Era Finalists will be trimmed during the meeting from 15 to 10 and then from 10 to 5. The remaining five finalists will be voted on individually, "yes" or "no" and must receive the same 80 percent positive vote as the Seniors and Contributor Finalists to earn election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The Class of 2018 will be announced during the "NFL Honors" nationally broadcast award show that evening.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2018 will be formally enshrined next August in Canton. The enshrinement is one of three marquee events, along with the Hall of Fame Game and the Concert for Legends, that are held in the spectacular Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium during the Enshrinement Week Powered by Johnson Controls.
For the seventh consecutive year, fans can vote for their favorite Pro Football Hall of Fame nominees. Fans should visit nfl.com/hofvote to make their picks. The Class of 2018 fan vote is presented by Ford, the Official Automobile of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
