Jerome Bettis, Jack Butler, Dermontti Dawson and Kevin Greene are among the finalists to be considered for election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame when the Hall's Selection Committee meets in Indianapolis on Saturday, Feb. 4.
The full list of finalists includes:
Jerome Bettis – Running Back – 1993-95 Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams, 1996-2005 Pittsburgh Steelers
Tim Brown – Wide Receiver/Kick Returner – 1988-2003 Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders, 2004 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Jack Butler – Cornerback – 1951-59 Pittsburgh Steelers
Cris Carter – Wide Receiver – 1987-89 Philadelphia Eagles, 1990-2001 Minnesota Vikings, 2002 Miami Dolphins
Dermontti Dawson – Center – 1988-2000 Pittsburgh Steelers
Edward DeBartolo, Jr. – Owner – 1977-2000 San Francisco 49ers
Chris Doleman – Defensive End/Linebacker – 1985-1993, 1999 Minnesota Vikings, 1994-95 Atlanta Falcons, 1996-98 San Francisco 49ers
Kevin Greene – Linebacker/Defensive End – 1985-1992 Los Angeles Rams, 1993-95 Pittsburgh Steelers, 1996, 1998-99 Carolina Panthers, 1997 San Francisco 49ers
Charles Haley – Defensive End/Linebacker – 1986-1991, 1999 San Francisco 49ers, 1992-96 Dallas Cowboys
Cortez Kennedy – Defensive Tackle – 1990-2000 Seattle Seahawks
Curtis Martin – Running Back – 1995-97 New England Patriots, 1998-2005 New York Jets
Bill Parcells – Coach – 1983-1990 New York Giants, 1993-96 New England Patriots, 1997-99 New York Jets, 2003-06 Dallas Cowboys
Andre Reed – Wide Receiver – 1985-1999 Buffalo Bills, 2000 Washington Redskins
Willie Roaf – Tackle – 1993-2001 New Orleans Saints, 2002-05 Kansas City Chiefs
Will Shields – Guard – 1993-2006 Kansas City Chiefs
Dick Stanfel – Guard – 1952-55 Detroit Lions, 1956-58 Washington Redskins
Aeneas Williams – Cornerback/Safety – 1991-2000 Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals, 2001-04 St. Louis Rams
Those who have been finalists in previous years are Bettis, Brown, Carter, Dawson, Doleman, Haley, Kennedy, Martin, Parcells, Reed, Roaf and Stanfel. Although they were eligible in previous years, this is the first time Butler, DeBartolo, Greene and Williams have been finalists.
From this year's list, four players – Butler, Dawson, Kennedy, and Shields spent their entire NFL career with just one team.
Butler and Stanfel were selected as senior candidates by the Hall of Fame's Seniors Committee at their August 2011 meeting. The Seniors Committee reviews the qualifications of those players whose careers took place more than 25 years ago. The remaining 15 modern-era finalists were determined by a vote of the Hall's 44-member Selection Committee from a list of 105 preliminary nominees that earlier was reduced to a list of 26 semifinalists.
