The Pro Football Hall of Fame is in the midst of announcing its class of 2012, but we already know one guy who is not in the class. Tim Brown sent out a tweet indicating he did not get the call from the Hall in 2012:
Raider nation!! Don't bother to watch tonight they passed on me again!! In fact, no wrs made it again. Gotta get some of y'all in there!!
— Tim Brown (@81TimBrown) February 4, 2012
It's safe to say Tim Brown is not pleased, and it is understandable why he is so displeased. Brown put together a career body of work that is among the best in NFL history. He ranks fifth in career receptions, fourth in career receiving yards and sixth in career touchdowns. Only one current Hall of Famer ranks ahead of Brown in the career numbers and that is Jerry Rice. I'd say that is fairly impressive company and very much worthy of the Hall of Fame.
The argument against Brown might be that his single season numbers did not blow people away on a consistent basis. He led the league in receptions once, but otherwise was not a frequent league-leader. Of course, given that the Hall of Fame is about the career and not single seasons, that is a fairly weak argument. I would imagine Brown will eventually get into the Hall of Fame, much like Art Monk did. It will just involve the media trying to convince people that a player becomes more Hall-worthy as time moves on, which is pretty weak.