Belichick, Kraft show up for Moss in Canton
CANTON, Ohio — With a passionate 33-minute speech in which he strolled around the stage, ad libbed, praised and joked, spoke of sacrifice, love, glory and overcoming the odds, Ray Lewis entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame last night.
One of the best linebackers and leaders the game has seen, Lewis was the final man inducted of the seven class of 2018 members on hand. He was preceeded by Randy Moss, Brian Dawkins, Brian Urlacher, Jerry Kramer, Robert Brazile and Bobby Beathard.
Terrell Owens was not here, choosing instead to hold his own ceremony in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Patriots coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft surprised Moss by traveling to the ceremony. A firstyear nominee, the 6-foot-4, 210-pound Moss brought the perfect combination of height, speed, soft hands and agility to Minnesota as the 21st overall draft pick in 1998 after a rocky college career. His 69 receptions, 17 for touchdowns, and 1,313 yards helped the Vikings go 15-1 and earned him Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.
That was just the start for the eccentric but always dynamic Moss. When he finally hooked up with an elite quarterback, he caught a record 23 TD passes from Tom Brady in New England’s perfect 2007 regular season.
“When I came into the NFL I had no sense of direction,” Moss said. “All I wanted to do was play football. Not for one day did I not think God was with me.”
Moss was a four-time AllPro and member of the NFL All-Decade Team of the 2000s who played for five franchises in all. He said he didn’t regret one day with any of those clubs.
Moss rubbed the face and top of his bust, then delivered a sermon worthy of any church or synagogue. He paid tribute to his family, to the fans of his five teams, and to his roots in West Virginia — he promised he would return to his hometown of Rand today to show off his gold jacket.
“To my gold jacket brothers, I vow I will wear it proudly,” Moss said.
Joining Moss on stage were linebacker Brazile, who earned the Dr. Doom by playing in all 147 games and was a five-time AllPro for the Houston Oilers in his 10-year NFL career; Beathard, who won four Super Bowls as a team executive and drafted four Pro Football Hall of Famers; Kramer, the star guard of the great Vince Lombardi Green Bay Packers teams of the 1960s; Urlacher, a fivetime All-Pro linebacker in 13 seasons in Chicago and a member of the 2000s AllDecade Team; and Dawkins, the hard-hitting safety for 13 seasons in Philadelphia and another three in Denver, totaling five All-Pro nods and a 2000s All-Decade spot.
At his alma mater, the University of Chattanooga, Owens held his own ceremony and gave a 39-minute speech — explaining why he was not in Canton.
“It’s not because of how many times it took for me to be voted to the hall,” said Owens. “It’s about the mere fact that the sports writers are not in alignment with the mission and core values of the Hall of Fame. These writers disregarded the system, the criteria and bylaws in which guys are inducted, and ultimately the true meaning of the Hall of Fame and what it represents.”
Owens later discussed his issue with the current selection process at a news conference that lasted 26 minutes, saying writers never played the game, with no “blood, sweat and tears” invested.