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Former Indianapolis Colts running back Edgerrin James has been left out of the 2018 Hall of Fame class in his fourth year of eligibility. James was the fourth overall selection in the 1999 draft and immediately made his presence felt rounding out the backfield to all but complete one of the best offenses the league has ever seen.
While he was named one of the modern-era finalists for the class for the second time, he was eliminated on the cut to 10 finalists and didn’t make the cut to induction.
James was without question one of the best running backs in NFL history and has already put some other greats in his rearview mirror, and possessed the durability needed to achieve the honor. While we can’t take anything away from those who did get the nod, James’ day is undoubtedly coming very soon and his greatness cannot be denied.
Hall of Fame, Class of 2018: Randy Moss, Brian Urlacher, Ray Lewis, Brian Dawkins, Terrell Owens, Jerry Kramer, Robert Brazile and Bobby Beathard.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 3, 2018
James led the league in rushing in his first two seasons as a pro, amassed 12,246 total rushing yards in his 11 years in the NFL (9,226 as a Colt) and amazingly averaged at least 96 rushing yards per game in all but one of his 7 seasons in Indianapolis.
Adding to his portfolio, James was a four-time Pro Bowl selection, earned All-Pro honors in 1999, currently sits 13th all time in rushing yards, 12th in rush yards per game (82.7), 15th in yards from scrimmage (15,610 yards) and 9th in total touches (3,461).
James also played for the Arizona Cardinals for 3 seasons (2006-08) and Seattle Seahawks in his final season in 2009. Edgerrin still continues to protest in a classy manner for his chance to be immortalized in which his point couldn’t be more spot on.
What Running Backs did all three phases of the game better? (Run/Catch/Block) *Asking for a friend lol
— Edgerrin James (@EdgerrinJames) February 2, 2018
James played in at least 13 games in 9 of his 11 seasons, only had 2 seasons — in which he played more than 13 games — where he had fewer than 300 carries, he saw at least 50 targets out of the backfield 7 times, and despite playing alongside Peyton Manning broke the double-digit touchdown mark 4 times.
We should expect James to get his induction soon and will be expected to be one of the finalists again next season.