Denver Broncos: Rod Smith needs to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Denver Broncos Great wide receiver Rod Smith has been eligible for the Hall of Fame for many years but has been overlooked. It is time for that to change…
Denver Broncos great wide receiver Rod Smith has been out of the league since retiring in 2006.
He is more than deserving of being enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The million dollar question is, will he ever be?
Since he retired in 2008, he has been passed on the all-time yardage list by eighteen players. They are: receiver Muhsin Muhammad, tight end Antonio Gates, receiver Calvin Johnson, receiver Derrick Mason, receiver Hines Ward, receiver Brandon Marshall, tight end Jason Witten, receiver Torry Holt, receiver Anquan Boldin, receiver Andre Johnson, receiver Reggie Wayne, receiver Marvin Harrison, receiver Steve Smith, tight end Tony Gonzalez, receiver Isaac Bruce, receiver Randy Moss, receiver Larry Fitzgerald, and receiver Terrell Owens.
It is a shame that the Hall of Fame voters have overlooked Smith all these years. A player who went undrafted during the 1994 draft, he was signed by the Broncos.
He played in all sixteen games during his rookie season, catching just six passes for 152 yards and one touchdown.
Despite his underwhelming rookie season as a Bronco, the team kept him around for his entire career. Smith 70-plus passes in each season from 1997-2002 and had over 1,000 yards during each of those seasons as well.
It is an amazing accomplishment to have that many consecutive 1,000-yard seasons in the National Football League.
He still produced solid numbers while catching passes from quarterbacks not named John Elway, which makes his case for the Hall of Fame even greater. In fact, most of his 1,000-yard seasons came after Elway retired, following the team’s second Super Bowl victory in 1998.
I believe that he has been overlooked so many times due to the fact that the Hall of Fame does not look in the direction of west coast teams. The Broncos have always been unappreciated, whether it is due to overall respect or the lack of attention when it comes to Hall of Fame consideration.
The Broncos have just five members in the Hall of Fame right now: quarterback John Elway, running back Terrell Davis (which took a really long time to get in, unfortunately), tight end Shannon Sharpe, offensive lineman Gary Zimmerman, and running back Floyd Little.
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Rod Smith’s enshrinement into the Hall of Fame is long overdue. It needs to happen.
I’m honestly worried that the time has passed, due to a number of players passing him on the career yardage list.
It’s an unfortunate thing that he was not enshrined immediately when he became eligible.
Dear Hall of Fame voters, the time is now. Give him the acknowledgment he deserves.
Get him in the Hall.