About a month ago I was fortunate enough to have the chance to interview former 49ers QB/legend Steve Young. Although I was able to ask Young an assortment of questions, the impetus for the interview was his involvement with something called The Van Heusen Pro Football Hall of Fame Fan's Choice. This program, partnership between Van Heusen, JC Penney and the NFL Hall of Fame was developed as a way to get the fans more involved in the Hall marketing and selection process. This program allows fans to campaign for their favorite players and vote for who they think belongs in the Hall. While the vote will not be binding on the selection committee, the results will be announced on the NFL Network and maybe will influence the voters. More importantly, maybe it's a step towards giving fans some kind of say in the process.
For those who might have missed it, on the right side of the front page, the featured poll asks for your choice the Fans' Choice Hall of Fame Poll. In quite possible the least surprising news ever, Jerry Rice is running away with it, holding 58% of the vote. The next closest vote-getter is Emmitt Smith with 12%. If you go over to the voting page, you're allowed to vote one time per day. The ballot closes at the end of November.
The list of 49ers on the ballot is quite interesting, although many of the players come with asterisks due to limited time on the team. After the jump I've got a list of the players, where they currently rank on the balloting and some quick thoughts on some of the potential 49ers. I'll give away a bit of the secret: Vote for Roger Craig as often as you can.
Jerry Rice - #1
Richard Dent - #8
Charles Haley - #9
Jim Plunkett - #14
Kevin Greene - #19
Roger Craig - #24
Gary Anderson - #26
Rickey Jackson - #30
Eddie Debartolo, Jr. - #54
Fred Smerlas - #60
Ricky Watters - #65
Chris Doleman - #68
Reggie Roby - #83
Russ Francis - #90
Well, first off, given that there are 130 players involved in this, having all your players be in the top 90 is pretty cool. At the same time, we know some of these players are not 49ers in the traditional sense. Guys like Richard Dent and Jim Plunkett, while great players, are just not 49ers.
Given that Jerry Rice is a total lock for the Hall, we might as well try and push for another deserving candidate to get some more love. My choice on that is Roger Craig. I'd imagine some of you would want the push to go to Eddie D, but I really think Craig deserves serious consideration. When I spoke with Steve Young he felt that Craig would eventually get in along with some of those other mid-90s 49ers. Craig sits at 24th right now, so maybe we can at least push him into the top 20, if not higher.