1973 Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project Class.

Here we are!  Again!!

If you have been following our Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project, you know we have asked the rhetorical question: What if the PFHOF began in January 1946?

After soliciting and obtaining a passionate group of football fans and historians, we sent out a ballot for a Preliminary Vote, in which we asked each voter to give us 25 names as their semi-finalists and 5 in the Senior Pool. We then asked the group to vote for their 15 Finalists in the Modern Era and 3 in the Senior Category. The final stage was to vote for their five Modern Era inductee and one Senior inductee.

This is the result of the 28th official class; 

Below are the final results of this project based on 30 votes.

Remember that the group took a vote in “1970”, and we have reverted to the top five candidates entering the Hall, PROVIDING THEY MAKE 50% of the vote.  This will be put to a vote again in “1976”.

This is for the “Modern Era”

*Bold indicates they have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Class of 1973:

This is for the “Senior Era”, 

*Bold indicates they have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Class of 1973.

This is for the “Coaches/Contributors”, 

*Bold indicates they have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Class of 1973.

About the 1973 Inductees:

Raymond Berry E, BAL 1955-67: Inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project in 1973 on his 1^st Ballot.  Inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973.

Raymond Berry was all about the details with every aspect of his game.  An expert route runner, Berry rarely fumbled or dropped passes and was essential to the two consecutive Baltimore Colts Championships in the late 1950s.  Most notably, he caught 12 passes in the 1958 Championship Game for 178 Yards and a Touchdown.  

Berry would lead the NFL in receptions three times as well as receiving yards three times.  He would amass 9,275 Yards and 68 Touchdowns, an incredible number for his time period.

Lenny Moore, HB-FL, BAL 1956-67.  Inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project in 1973 on his 1^st Ballot.  Inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1975.

A Baltimore Colt for all twelve seasons of his career, Halfback, Lenny Moore was a bona fide dual threat.  Moore was one of the rare players who was equally adept at rushing and receiving and scored more than 100 Touchdowns.  Moore would lead the National Football League in Yards/Attempt four times, Touchdowns twice, and Yards from Scrimmage once.  The offensive superstar would be a five-time First Team All-Pro and was named the MVP in 1964.  

Pretty good career, right?

It’s not over yet.  

Moore was a major force in the Colts consecutive NFL Championships in the late 1950s and he entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1975.

Jim Parker, T-G, BAL 1957-67: Inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project in 1973 on his 1st Ballot.  Inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973.

Jim Parker spent his entire eleven-year career as a Baltimore Colt. The prolific Lineman was a champion in College (with Ohio State) and helped the Colts win the NFL Title in 1958 and 1959.  Parker was named to both the 50th and 75th Anniversary Teams as well as eight Pro Bowls and eight First Team squads.

Jim Ringo, C, GNB 1953-63 & PHI 1964-67.  Inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project in 1973 on his 1st Ballot.  Inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1981.

Jim Ringo played most of his Hall of Fame career with the Green Bay Packers and it was there that he started 126 of 131 games.  Ringo was a seven-time Pro Bowl and six-time First Team All-Pro Selection with Green Bay, and he was a vital component of the team that won the 1960 and 1961 NFL Championship.

Allegedly, Ringo had asked for a raise after the 1963 season, and did so in a way that angered the Packers brass, who promptly traded him to Philadelphia.  Regardless of that is true, Ringo was still a good player, and went to earn three more Pro Bowls as an Eagle.

Jim Taylor, FB, GNB 1958-67.  Inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project in 1973 on his 1st Ballot.  Inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1976.

An All-American at LSU, the Packers would select Taylor in the second round of the 1958 draft. He saw limited action as a rookie but when Vince Lombardi was hired, Taylor would become a feature back. Along with Paul Hornung, the Packers would have the best pair of backs in the game. A power runner, Taylor was especially effective in short yardage situations. In 1960, Taylor would have his first of five consecutive 1,000 Yard Rushing seasons. His most productive would occur in 1963 where he would have a career high and league leading 1,474 Yards with 19 Rushing Touchdowns and he was named the AP MVP.

Under Lombardi, Taylor would assist the Packers win the 1961, 1962, 1965 and 1966 NFL Championship and he was a member of the Super Bowl I Championship Team. Individually speaking he was a five-time Pro Bowler and a First Team All Pro in 1963. Finishing his career in New Orleans for one season in 1967, he would retire with 8,597 Rushing Yards with 83 Rushing Touchdowns.

Joe Kopcha, G, CHI 1929 & 1932-35.  Inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project in 1973 on his 12th Senior Ballot.  Was never inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1976.

Kopcha finally makes it after being on the ballot from year one.  Tough as he was versatile, Kopcha was an old school cardio machine who was good in the 60th minute as he was in the first.  A hidden gem on Chicago’s 1932 and 1933 NFL Championship team, Kopcha’s career was brief, but impactful.  He is also known for redesigning shoulder pads, whose basic designs are still in use today.

Vince Lombardi, Head Coach, GNB 1959-67 & WAS 1969.  Inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project in 1973 on his 1st Coaches/Contributors Ballot.  Inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.

With all due respect to every coach in the National Football League history, there is, and will never will be another man revered more than Vince Lombardi in that capacity.

After revamping the New York Giants offense and helping to make them one of the most potent forces in football, the Green Bay Packers, who had only won a single game in 1958, signed him to coach their team.  Lombardi turned them around instantly, and the Packers won five NFL Championships and the first two Super Bowls.  He finished his career with one year in Washington (1969), before ill health forced him to retire.

Lombardi had a stellar record of 96-34-6, and he remains the coaching template in not just football but in life.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the top 50 of each major North American sports team. That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists and consistently look to update them when necessary and based on necessity. As such, we are delighted to present our post-2023 revision of our top 50 Indianapolis Colts.

As for all of our top 50 players in football, we look at the following:

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in the National Football League.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles that are not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, the Colts failed to make the playoffs, but we saw one new entrant and one elevation.

As always, we present our top five, which saw no changes:

1. Peyton Manning
2. Johnny Unitas
3. Gino Marchetti
4. Marvin Harrison
5. Raymond Berry 

You can find the entire list here.

Offensive Lineman and six-time Pro Bowl Selection Quenton Nelson, advances to #22 from #30.

The lone new entry is Center Ryan Kelly, who debuts at #45.

Notably, Shaquille Leonard, who played half last season with Indianapolis, could not rise from his rank of #40.

Buddy Young fell out of the Top 50.

We thank you for your continued support of our lists on Notinhalloffame.com.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team. That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity. As such, we are very happy to present our post 2022 revision of our top 50 Indianapolis Colts.

As for all of our top 50 players in football we look at the following:

1. Advanced Statistics.

2. Traditional statistics and how they finished in the National Football League.

3. Playoff accomplishments.

4. Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, the Colts entered another rebuilding year and were unable to make the playoffs. There was only one elevation resulting from the past season.

As always, we present our top five, which did not change.

1. Peyton Manning

2. Johnny Unitas

3. Gino Marchetti

4. Marvin Harrison

5. Raymond Berry

You can find the entire list here.

The only change is Offensive Lineman, Quenton Nelson, climbs ten rungs to #30. He is now a five-time Pro Bowl Selection.

We welcome your input and comments and as always, we thank you for your support.