Is Drew Bledsoe a Hall of Fame Player? (no)

[DaBruinz]

I don't honestly know if Bledsoe will get into the Hall of Fame. However, given the fact that they just elected a coke addict who was busted within the last year in to the Hall of Fame, who is to say what will make it and what won't.

 

[PromisedLand]

I agree with everything you said. While some of his numbers are impressive Drew was more of a compiler than anything else.

If you had asked me after his first 5 years in the league if I thought he'd eventually end up in the HoF, I'd have said absolutely.

Everyone thought so then. But the sad thing about Drew's 15 year NFL career is that his signature game, the best game of his career, the one everyone remembers, is the comeback against Minnesota in 1994, which came in his SECOND year.

 

[PromisedLand]

I don't think those numebrs are really all that relevant. He played in the last 20 years when the rules have been altered to help the passing game. As a result average QBs and WRs in this era are all putting up much better stats than the greats did in past eras and will own the leaderboards when they retire.

That's a very good point. Of course it also applies to Brett Favre.

 

[Patriotic]

Drew Bledsoe should be the first inductee to the Hall of Average.

No way. But he has a middle of the road chance to make the Hall of Mediocre.

 

[dhamz]

That's a very good point. Of course it also applies to Brett Favre.

Favre is a HOF QB because of a prime that included 3 straight MVPs, a lot of late game comebacks, and a Super Bowl ring. If all he had were the gaudy totals, he wouldn't be going in either.

 

[Fixit]

That's a very good point. Of course it also applies to Brett Favre.

Ha was Favre D) and away the best player in football during his MVP years. That dude has earned the Hall.

 

[PromisedLand]

I didn't mean to imply that I thought Favre did NOT belong in the HOF, just that his numbers (and to a lesser extent, Marino's, who retired in 2000) cannot be compared to the quarterbacks who played in the earlier era. Favre will most likely end up as the all-time leader in passing TD's and yards before he retires.

 

[dhamz]

I didn't mean to imply that I thought Favre did NOT belong in the HOF, just that his numbers (and to a lesser extent, Marino's, who retired in 2000) cannot be compared to the quarterbacks who played in the earlier era. Favre will most likely end up as the all-time leader in passing TD's and yards before he retires.

And picks....

 

[PatsFanSince74]

IMO, I don't think that Bledsoe will ever go into the HOF because he never won a SuperBowl and also had the misfortune of playing out a career that overlapped with Aikman, Brady, Elway, Favre, and Peyton Manning.

But, stats-wise, he wasn't too shabby and he will definitely be considered when his time comes.

Here is a comparison of Drew's career stats with the 17 SB era QB's in the HOF (Aikman, Bradshaw, Dawson, Elway, Fouts, Griese, Jurgensen, Kelly, Marino, Montana, Moon, Namath, Starr, Staubach, Tarkenton, Unitas and Young).

Completions: Bledsoe, 3,839. Median of the 17 HOF QB's, 2,830. High of the 17 HOF QB's, Marino, 4,967. Low, Staubach, 1,685.

Completion Percent: Bledsoe, 57.2%. Median of the 17, 57.1%. High of the 17, Young, 64.5%, 4,967. Low, Namath, 50.1%

Games: Bledsoe, 194. Median, 192. High of the 17, Tarkenton, 246. Low, Staubach, 131.

Attempts: Bledsoe, 6,717. Median, 4,715. High of the 17, Marino, 8,358. Low, Staubach, 2,958.

Passing Yards: Bledsoe, 44,611. Median, 33,124. High of the 17, Marino, 61,361. Low, Staubach, 22,700

TD's: Bledsoe, 251. Median, 239.. High of the 17, Marino, 420. Low, Starr, 152.

INT's: Bledsoe, 206; Median, 189.. High of the 17, Marino, 252. Low, Young, 107.

QB Rating: Bledsoe, 77.1; Median, 80.9. High of the 17, Young, 96.8. Low, Namath, 65.5 (pre rule changes).

 

[maverick4]

ESPN talked about this exact topic today.

 

[jefmblrd]

Drew did some good things while he was here, but there is no way he's a hall of famer.

 

[The Boston Patriot]

No. I will never forgive him for the interception in Pittsburgh.

 

[Patriot Missile]

But Dan Fouts can be in the Hall? I think some are losing sight of what the Hall of Fame is all about. There are plenty of players that are in there that don't belong in some eyes. Cut it any way you want to. Only 6 other guys who have walked this Earth have thrown more passing yards than Drew. He's what? 3rd or 4th in completions and attempts?

I know the guy didn't win the big one but he left it all on the field {not to mention the 200+ ints} and never ran anyone on his own team under the bus.
He did great things for the community and still does until this day.

Things worked out for us. We basically won the lottery with Tom Brady and he took the franchise to riches and glory. But I can't help but think about how much I admired Bledsoe as our QB and how much excitement he brought to the fans. I truly believe he loved the fans of NE and I am kind of suprised that some haven't gave him his due. Basically some people sound like a broken record about the comments they make about him. Almost the same comments that Miami and Jet fans made while he was in our uni.

 

[patsfan-1982]

if i had a vote i would say yes but i dont think he will get in he dose hold the racord for comp att in a season and in a game and in 1998 lead back to back comeback wins with a brokeing finger on has throwing hand he had a pin in it he was great for us

 

[stcjones]

Not the Canton Hall of Fame.

But if we ever had one in Foxborough, he'd be in there, right?

No question......he would be in the Pats hall of fame....I would highly doubt that he would get into canton

 

[MoLewisrocks]

But Dan Fouts can be in the Hall? I think some are losing sight of what the Hall of Fame is all about. There are plenty of players that are in there that don't belong in some eyes. Cut it any way you want to. Only 6 other guys who have walked this Earth have thrown more passing yards than Drew. He's what? 3rd or 4th in completions and attempts?

I know the guy didn't win the big one but he left it all on the field {not to mention the 200+ ints} and never ran anyone on his own team under the bus.
He did great things for the community and still does until this day.

Things worked out for us. We basically won the lottery with Tom Brady and he took the franchise to riches and glory. But I can't help but think about how much I admired Bledsoe as our QB and how much excitement he brought to the fans. I truly believe he loved the fans of NE and I am kind of suprised that some haven't gave him his due. Basically some people sound like a broken record about the comments they make about him. Almost the same comments that Miami and Jet fans made while he was in our uni.

The media elects them and one of Drew's biggest media toadies (Cafardo) said on ESPN radio yesterday that he is not a HOF QB. He could have been even without winning a Superbowl because of his gaudy passing numbers. But he needed another couple of top tier seasons after being traded, which Nick fully expected him to turn in. But those never transpired in Buffalo (where he had a very good first half of his first season that proved he could do better if he was motivated to, but then he regressed to his norm and eventually drove them batty for the usual reasons) or in Dallas (where Tuna pulled him from his last game on national television for basically being stubborn to the point of insubordinate). His QB rating is less than pedestrian and he was never a dominant QB in his era.

Both Nick and Felger summed it up yesterday pretty well. Both were surprised he hung 'em up when he likely could have hung around as a backup to a couple of QB's who are eminently replaceable. But he wasn't motivated to compete with them. That underlying belief that a job was his by virtue of his own perception of his status dogged him to the end. He just couldn't compete. He never lost his job, it was always taken from him in what he categorized as a bad coaching/management decision. He didn't want to work on all the important little things that seperate mere talented arms from truly talented QB's. Never learned to read defenses well, expected others to protect him or make plays for him while resisting multiple HC's efforts to get him to speed up his thinking and his footwork and release. Made the same mistakes and poor decisions over and over and over again. He was not a student of the game, just a guy who lived to sling it on Sunday. In today's NFL that made his a dinosaur lumbering down the slow road to extinction.

There are lots of dinosaurs in the HOF who couldn't play in today's NFL, but they didn't play in this era. Drew did. If his career had spanned the mid eighties and ended in the late nineties his numbers alone would likely make him at least a HOF candidate. But it didn't and in this era he isn't.

 

[zarakotas5]

Bledsoe will not make the HOF. As many have said, he has many accomplishments that grant him consideration. As others have said, he was fantastically average.

It's akin to getting 3000 hits in MLB but only batting .265 and not a real HR type of guy.

That said, he is without a doubt amongst the greats to ever don a Patriots jersey and he should be regarded appropriately by the fans of this team for everything that means. I believe that is what most people are trying to come to terms with and understand. He helped legitimize the franchise. On, off, and on the sidelines of the field.

 

[dhamz]

But Dan Fouts can be in the Hall?

Apples and oranges. I'm not a big Fouts supporter but their Hall of Fames cases are not similar.

Fouts was a statistically dominant QB in his era. Bledsoe was never a dominant QB during his career but compiled big career totals in comparison to other hall of fame QBs because of the era he played in.

 

[PromisedLand]

Apples and oranges. I'm not a big Fouts supporter but their Hall of Fames cases are not similar.

Fouts was a statistically dominant QB in his era. Bledsoe was never a dominant QB during his career but compiled big career totals in comparison to other hall of fame QBs because of the era he played in.

Exactly. As others have already pointed out, the rules have changed over the years to favor the passing game more and more, and to protect the quarterback more and more. This is reflected in the stats of the best quarterbacks in each decade.

Babe Parilli was a pretty competent quarterback in his day (1960's) but only had a career completion percentage of 46.6%! Today a quarterback with that stat wouldn't even make the practice squad! Johnny Unitas is in the eyes of many the best quarterback ever, and he completed only 54.6% of his passes and had nearly as many interceptions (253) as completions (290).

You just can't look at stats in a vacuum - you have to look at them in the context of their peers.

 

[drpatriot]

Think about it this way: Which quarterbacks, in 5 or 6 years, will be in consideration for the Hall of Fame?

Unless Brett Favre or Steve McNair retired and I didn't notice, I can't think of anyone who has pretty recently retired that even somewhat deserves mentioning.

Except maybe Rich Gannon

I wouldn't say it's a sure thing based on this, but the electors love putting quarterbacks into the Hall of Fame. And with no one else to compare Bledsoe against, he should have a pretty good shot.