Pro Football Hall of Fame to expand inductees class for 2020
Patriots sign ex-Saints WR Meredith
CANTON, Ohio, Aug 3, (Agencies): The Pro Football Hall of Fame will expand the number of potential inductees to 20 in 2020 as part of the NFL’s celebration of its 100th season.
Calling it a centennial class, hall president David Baker said Friday five modern-day players, 10 seniors, three contributors and two coaches could be elected next year. The modern-day group would be decided by the 48 selection committee voters, as always, on the day before the Super Bowl in February.
The other 15 would be voted on as one bloc, not individually, by the selection committee. They would be chosen by a 25-member committee that will include Hall of Famers, historians and current voters.
Part of the 2020 class would be inducted in early August. The others would be enshrined about Sept 17, 2020, the date that marks 100 years from the original NFL game.
Baker did not identify the specific members of the 25-person committee, nor the exact voting procedures. Through the years, 80% positive votes have been required for election.
He joked that with so many potential inductees next year – the current maximum is eight – there will be “a lot of doors to knock on” with the good news.
“This is good for football, for the Pro Football Hall of Fame and it is great for the NFL,” he said. “We get a way to celebrate 100 years and look forward to the next 100 years.” Baker also expressed strong confidence that the voters will get things right and no one who doesn’t have the proper credentials will wind up making the hall.
“It’s an opportunity to catch up perhaps on some injustices,” he said, mentioning there are seven members of NFL alldecade teams not in the Hall of Fame. “This is an opportunity that comes around every other lifetime.”
Wide receiver
signed with the
Meredith, 26, who has played 31 games over three seasons, was released by the
on Monday. He signed a two-year, $9.5 million offer sheet with the Saints as a restricted free agent of the in 2018.
Meredith never regained his pre-injury form following a torn ACL in the 2017 preseason with the Bears. He played in six games with the Saints last season but was not a participant in organized team activities or minicamp this summer.
He caught nine passes for 114 yards with the Saints but landed on injured reserve last season due to persistent swelling and discomfort in his knee.
He was an undrafted rookie out of Illinois State in 2015 and played two seasons with the Bears, making 66 catches for 888 yards and four touchdowns in 2016.
The signed former Tennessee Titans safety to a one-year contract.
The 29-year-old Cyprien missed the entire 2018 season with a torn ACL, but the signing signals that he’s at or near full health.
Over the 2017 season, Cyprien
Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Dede Westbrook runs after a reception during an NFL football practice at the team’s stadium on Aug 2 in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP)
had 57 tackles in 10 games for the Titans. He missed six games with a hamstring injury.
A second-round pick by Jacksonville in the 2013 draft, he compiled 449 tackles in his first four seasons with the Jaguars.
The worked out wide receiver Brandon Marshall and running back Mike Gillislee on Friday, according to multiple reports.
Marshall, 35, is a six-time Pro Bowl selection who played seven games with the
in 2018. He was signed by the in December but was released without playing in a game.
Gillislee played four games for the Saints last season and averaged just 2.7 yards per carry, gaining 43 yards on 16 carries. New Orleans signed him after he was cut by the
in early September. Second-round pick
has been slowed by a hamstring injury in Colts camp, while running back
will miss at least the first six regular-season games after being placed on the reserve/ physically unable to perform list.
Just three days after being diagnosed with a bruised quadricep, wide receiver was back on the practice field.
Hill left practice Tuesday after colliding with a teammate and suffering a quad contusion, but he was back on the field and in pads Friday. The report did not address how much he would participate.
Free agent cornerback
remains unsigned, and a looming fourgame suspension could be the reason why.
According to reports, Claiborne is appealing a suspension for violations of the substance abuse policy.
Claiborne, 29, is still expected to find work this season.