A closer look at the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022

CANTON, Ohio — On Aug. 6 in Canton, the Pro Football Hall of Fame will officially welcome the newest members of its hallowed halls.

Eight men will be inducted for their contributions to what has become known as America’s Game, all receiving busts forever immortalizing their likenesses in history. From hulking linemen to slick receivers and even coaches and officials, all facets of the NFL will be well-represented.

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Let’s take a closer look at the Class of 2022.

One of the most dominant blindside blockers of his day, Boselli anchored the Jags’ line from the franchise’s founding and helped them reach two AFC Championship Games. A five-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro, his career was cut short by a devastating shoulder injury, and his lack of longevity was the only reason the Hall didn’t come calling until his 15th year of eligibility.

This year’s Seniors Committee inductee, Branch is one of a proud few to play for all three of the Raiders’ Super Bowl champions, leading the league in receiving yards per game and touchdown catches twice each in the process. The three-time first-team All-Pro finished his career with 8,685 yards (17.3 per reception) and 67 TDs, but sadly did not live to see his enshrinement. He died in 2019 at the age of 71.

Butler began his career at cornerback before moving over to strong safety, a position he held down in Green Bay for the next decade. The four-time first-team All-Pro not only picked off 38 passed in his career, but also recorded 889 projected tackles (breaking the century mark twice) and 20 1/2 sacks. He helped the Packers to two NFC titles and a Super Bowl victory in 1996.

McNally’s time in football started as a field judge and referee before being named as the NFL’s supervisor of officials in 1968. During his tenure as supervisor and later director, he helped implement the league’s first instant replay system as well as the use of video technology to evaluate officiating performance. Following a brief stint in the ill-fated World Football League, he returned to the NFL as an advisor before finally retiring in 2015 at the age of 90.

Finally elected in his last year of eligibility on the Modern Era ballot, Mills was a five-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro who tallied at least 100 tackles seven times. After guiding the Saints to their first playoff appearances in franchise history, he moved on to the expansion Panthers, who made it to the NFC Championship game in just their second year of existence. Mills went straight from retirement to coaching Carolina’s linebackers, and was still in that position when he died of cancer in 2005 at the age of just 46.

Throughout the 2000s, few defensive linemen were as skilled and as versatile as Seymour, who made seven Pro Bowls and five All-Pro teams as both an end and a tackle. Besides his 91 tackles for loss and 57 1/2 career sacks, he even deflected 39 passes (including 10 in 2003) as he anchored a Pats defense that won three Super Bowls in four years.

One of the most respected figures ever to grace an NFL sideline, Vermeil left UCLA to take over the moribund Eagles and had them in the Super Bowl by his fifth season. A 15-year retirement for the relatively young coach followed before his next reclamation project came in St. Louis, where his steady hand developed the Rams from 4-12 to the “Greatest Show on Turf” and a world championship in 1999. A second brief retirement preceded his final stop in KC, where he won one last divisional title to finish his unique career with 126 total victories and six playoff appearances.

Fittingly, Young helped the Niners with their fifth Super Bowl championship as a rookie before becoming a mainstay on the team’s defensive line (mostly at tackle), recording 89 1/2 sacks and 93 official tackles for loss (not recorded until his sixth season) during a 14-year career. The four-time All-Pro was also the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year in 1999, when he had 11 sacks and 19 TFLs after a significant leg injury threatened his life the previous season.