Among those in their first-year of eligibility, there's one quarterback listed for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2021 nominees and he's one of the very best to have ever set foot upon the gridiron.
Peyton Manning, a two-time Super Bowl winner and five-time AP NFL Most Valuable Player who delighted Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos fans across 17 autumns, is tops among those newly eligible.
Among the other first-year headliners are former Packers and Raiders standout defensive back Charles Woodson, a Super Bowl winner and nine-time Pro Bowler, and Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson, a six-time Pro Bowl selection. One of the most prolific sack artists of all-time, Jared Allen, one of the most valuable contributors to the Patriots dynasty, guard Logan Mankins, and the innovator of the "Peanut Punch," cornerback Charles Tillman, are also now eligible.
To be considered for election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, a nominated individual must not have participated as an active player for five consecutive seasons.
A full list of the nominees is below:
First-Year Eligibles
Quarterback – Peyton Manning
Wide Receivers – Calvin Johnson, Wes Welker, Roddy White
Tight End –Heath Miller
Running Back – Steven Jackson
Offensive Linemen – D'Brickashaw Ferguson (T), Logan Mankins (G)
Defensive Backs – Charles Tillman (CB), Charles Woodson (CB/S)
Defensive Linemen – Jared Allen (DE), Justin Tuck (DE), Kevin Williams (DT)
Linebacker – Jerod Mayo
Additional Nominees
Quarterback – Drew Bledsoe, Randall Cunningham, Jake Delhomme, Jeff Garcia, Dave Krieg, Donovan McNabb, Steve McNair
Running Backs – Shaun Alexander, Mike Alstott (FB), Tiki Barber, Earnest Byner, Larry Centers, Corey Dillon, Warrick Dunn, Eddie George, Priest Holmes, Jamal Lewis, Eric Metcalf (also WR/KR/PR), Glyn Milburn (also WR/KR/PR), Lorenzo Neal (FB), Fred Taylor, Herschel Walker (also KR), Ricky Watters
Wide Receivers – Donald Driver, Henry Ellard (also PR), Torry Holt, Chad Johnson, Derrick Mason, Muhsin Muhammad, Jimmy Smith, Rod Smith, Hines Ward, Reggie Wayne
Tight Ends – Dallas Clark, Ben Coates, Keith Jackson, Brent Jones, Jeremy Shockey, Wesley Walls
Offensive Linemen – Willie Anderson (T), Matt Birk (C), Tony Boselli (T), Lomas Brown (T), Ruben Brown (G), Alan Faneca (G), Kevin Glover (C/G), Jordan Gross (T), Kent Hull (C), Olin Kreutz (C), Tom Nalen (C), Chris Samuels (T), Jeff Saturday (C), Chris Snee (G), Brian Waters (G), Richmond Webb (T), Erik Williams (T), Steve Wisniewski (G)
Defensive Linemen – John Abraham (DE also LB), Ray Childress (DT/DE), Casey Hampton (DT/NT), La'Roi Glover (DT/NT), Leslie O'Neal (DE), Michael Dean Perry (DT/DE), Simeon Rice (DE), *Richard Seymour (DT), Justin Smith (DE), Neil Smith (DE), Greg Townsend (DE/LB/DT/NT), Adrian Wilson (DE), Bryant Young (DT)
Linebackers – Cornelius Bennett, Lance Briggs, Tedy Bruschi, London Fletcher, Seth Joyner, Clay Matthews, Willie McGinest (also DE), Joey Porter, Sam Mills, Chris Spielman, Takeo Spikes, Pat Swilling (also DE), Darryl Talley, Zach Thomas, Patrick Willis
Defensive Backs – Eric Allen (CB), Ronde Barber (CB/S), LeRoy Butler (S), Nick Collins (S), Rodney Harrison (S), Merton Hanks (S), James Hasty (DB), Albert Lewis (CB), John Lynch (S), Tim McDonald (S), Allen Rossum (DB), Asante Samuel (DB), Bob Sanders (S), Troy Vincent (CB), Darren Woodson (S)
Punters/Kickers - David Akers (K), Gary Anderson (K), Jason Elam (K), Jeff Feagles (P), Jason Hanson (K), John Kasay (K), Sean Landeta (P), Ryan Longwell (K), Nick Lowery (K), Reggie Roby (P), Rohn Stark (P), Matt Turk (P)
Special Teams –Josh Cribbs (KR/PR also WR), Mel Gray (PR/KR also WR), Brian Mitchell (KR/PR also RB), Steve Tasker (ST also WR)
The 130 modern-era nominees include: 65 offensive players, 49 defensive players and 16 special teamers. The list of will be reduced to 25 semifinalists in November and 15 finalists in January. The Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2021 will be revealed during NFL Honors the night before Super Bowl LV.
