Tweet
Lynn Swann not sure Megatron is a Hall-of-Famer
With Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson reportedly considering retirement at age 30, lots of pundits are weighing in on whether his career stats will eventuallyy earn him entry into the pro Football Hall of Fame. Count legendary Pittsburgh Steelers wideout Lynn Swann among those voices that do not bellieve Megatron's stat are HOF caliber according to John Katzenstein of the Detroit News.
"I would think that it would be difficult for Calvin Johnson at this point to be considered a Hall of Famer," Swann told the paper. "Calvin Johnson has an extreme amount of talent and ability, but when you start to look at his team, the success of his team and did he lift that team; he made them a little bit better, but at the end of the day, I'm not quite sure."
Johnson is currently sixth all-time among active receivers in terms of yards. He's third in touchdowns behind only Antonio Gates and Larry Fitzgerald. Including inactive players, Johnson is 27th in yards and 22nd in touchdowns. But Swann does have a point in that there are plenty of receivers in front of Johnson in both yards and touchdowns who have yet to make the Hall, including Jimmy Smith, Torry Holt, Henry Ellard and Terrell Owens (who failed to make the top 10 in the 2016 HOF vote despite being second all-time in receiving yards and third all-time in touchdowns.)
On the other hand, Swann himself has 6,107 fewer receiving yards than Johnson and 32 fewer touchdowns and primarily made the Hall-of-Fame because he played for one of the greatest dynasties in NFL history. Megatron may not have lifted the Lions to greatness but he was not surrounded by anything close to the level of talent that Swann could count on in his heyday. At this point, Johnson seems a lot more concerned about the toll football has taken on his body than his legacy or HOF credentials.
With Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson reportedly considering retirement at age 30, lots of pundits are weighing in on whether his career stats will eventuallyy earn him entry into the pro Football Hall of Fame. Count legendary Pittsburgh Steelers wideout Lynn Swann among those voices that do not bellieve Megatron's stat are HOF caliber according to John Katzenstein of the Detroit News.
"I would think that it would be difficult for Calvin Johnson at this point to be considered a Hall of Famer," Swann told the paper. "Calvin Johnson has an extreme amount of talent and ability, but when you start to look at his team, the success of his team and did he lift that team; he made them a little bit better, but at the end of the day, I'm not quite sure."
Johnson is currently sixth all-time among active receivers in terms of yards. He's third in touchdowns behind only Antonio Gates and Larry Fitzgerald. Including inactive players, Johnson is 27th in yards and 22nd in touchdowns. But Swann does have a point in that there are plenty of receivers in front of Johnson in both yards and touchdowns who have yet to make the Hall, including Jimmy Smith, Torry Holt, Henry Ellard and Terrell Owens (who failed to make the top 10 in the 2016 HOF vote despite being second all-time in receiving yards and third all-time in touchdowns.)
On the other hand, Swann himself has 6,107 fewer receiving yards than Johnson and 32 fewer touchdowns and primarily made the Hall-of-Fame because he played for one of the greatest dynasties in NFL history. Megatron may not have lifted the Lions to greatness but he was not surrounded by anything close to the level of talent that Swann could count on in his heyday. At this point, Johnson seems a lot more concerned about the toll football has taken on his body than his legacy or HOF credentials.
Comment