When it comes to this year's Pro Football Hall of Fame class, some might consider it a case of good news, bad news for Cleveland Browns fans.
The good news? Art Modell has again fallen short of election, the latest chapter in a bitter battle that has raged on since the controversial owner moved the team to Baltimore in 1995. The bad news? Beloved former linebacker Clay Matthews Jr. also still finds himself on the outside looking in.
The Hall of Fame on Tuesday announced its slate of three "seniors," one coach, and one "contributor" who advance to the final stage of voting for the class of 2025. Modell was among nine semifinalists being considered by the Contributor Blue-Ribbon Committee, but did not end up being the final nominee selected. Instead, that honor went to Canton native Ralph Hay, who in the 1920s played a starring role in the founding of what would eventually become the National Football League.
Meanwhile, the Seniors Blue-Ribbon Committee was examining the cases of 31 ex-players whose careers ended no later than 1999. Matthews was one of those 31 names, but the committee confirmed this week that he was not even among the nine semifinalists being mulled over before the list wound up being whittled down to three.
Part of a historic football family that includes Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, Clay Matthews Jr. played 19 seasons in the NFL, including his first 16 with Cleveland. A model of consistency throughout his days in the league, he finished his career with an estimated 1,595 tackles and 82 1/2 sacks, along with 16 interceptions. A four-time Pro Bowler and 1984 All-Pro selection, the son of Southern California helped the Browns make three AFC Championship Games during the 1980s.
Matthews was a Hall of Fame finalist in 2021 — his last year on the Modern-Era ballot — but was passed over for enshrinement. His name has been a mainstay on the seniors ballot ever since, though he has time and again been snubbed in favor of other candidates.
This year's senior finalists include linebacker Maxie Baughan, receiver Sterling Sharpe, and offensive tackle Jim Tyrer, an Ohio native who starred at Ohio State prior to his pro career. Tyrer's candidacy is a somewhat sensitive topic, for while his accolades on the field likely would've made him a Hall of Famer decades ago, his legacy was forever tarnished in 1980, when he shot and killed his wife Martha before dying by suicide. In recent years, Jim and Martha's surviving children have expressed forgiveness for his actions and advocated for his enshrinement, blaming the tragic events of 1980 on brain damage Tyrer may have suffered from concussions during his playing days.
As for Modell, he earned the respect of his peers for helping negotiate lucrative contracts between the league and television networks, and also won an NFL championship with the Browns and later a Super Bowl with the Ravens. However, his management decisions have also at least been partly blamed for Cleveland's fall from the league's elite in the 1970s, and his name forever became a virtual curse word in Northeast Ohio in 1995 when he moved the club to Baltimore. This has long been cited as the main reason why he has failed to earn a bust in Canton.
Instead of Modell, the seniors committee chose Hay, a well-known Canton car dealer who purchased the Canton Bulldogs during their time in what was then known as the "Ohio League." In 1920, Hay organized a meeting in his auto showroom with the owners of 10 teams who agreed to form American Professional Football Association, which would later be renamed to the National Football League.
Hay's Bulldogs were considered the NFL's first "dynasty," winning back-to-back championships in 1922 and '23. Hay had sold the team before the latter season and later died in his hometown in 1944, but his efforts in advancing the game of professional football are considered one of the main reasons why Canton was chosen as the home of the Hall of Fame in 1961.
In addition to Hay, this year's coaching finalist also has ties to Northeast Ohio, although his exploits in Cleveland are not officially being taken into consideration. Mike Holmgren gained prominence as an assistant coach with the great San Francisco 49ers teams of the 1980s before becoming a head coach, winning 174 games and a Super Bowl title in 17 combined seasons with the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks. His time as president of the Browns from 2010-12 is less memorable, though, as the team posted an unflattering record of 14-32 before he was fired.
Along with Holmgren, former Browns coach Marty Schottenheimer was one of the coaching semifinalists, as well. In 21 seasons with four different organizations, Schottenheimer won 205 games, the most of any coach without a league championship ring.
From these five finalists, the Pro Football Hall of Fame's selection committee will choose no more than three for enshrinement next summer. Committee members will also separately consider a list of 15 modern-era finalists, with 10 names still set to be eliminated from the current slate of 25 semifinalists. The class of 2025 will be formally unveiled in February during the NFL Honors awards in New Orleans, three days before the Super Bowl.