Patriots owner Kraft selected as Hall of Fame finalist

CANTON, Ohio (AP) — Super Bowl-winning coaches Mike Shanahan and Mike Holmgren are among 24 seniors, coaches and contributors selected as finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2023.

Shanahan, who led the Denver Broncos to consecutive Super Bowl titles, and Holmgren, who won with the Green Bay Packers, are joined by 10 other coaches/contributors, including New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and former Cleveland Browns/Baltimore Ravens owner Art Modell.

The list of 12 former players includes four-time Pro Bowl quarterback Ken Anderson and five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Sterling Sharpe.

The 12-person Seniors Committee will meet Aug. 16, and each committee member will present one finalist. The committee’s final vote will send three Seniors to the full 49-person Selection Committee for consideration at its annual meeting in early 2023. Each of those three could be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame at that meeting.

Expansion of the Seniors pool to three for possible election to the Hall was approved earlier this year for the Classes of 2023, 2024 and 2025.

The remaining list of players: linebackers Randy Gradishar, Maxie Baughan, Tommy Nobis and Chuck Howley; offensive linemen Bob Kuechenberg; two-way player Cecil Isbell; defensive linemen Joe Klecko and cornerbacks Eddie Meador, Ken Riley and Everson Walls.

The remaining list of coaches/contributors: television executive and producer Roone Arledge; coach Don Coryell; front-office executive Frank “Bucko” Kilroy; coach Buddy Parker; coach Dan Reeves; Steelers vice president Art Rooney Jr.; coach Clark Shaughnessy; and long-time executive John Wooten.