Dallas Cowboys Bullet Bob Hayes 2009 NFL Hall of Fame Finalist - Charles Haley Denied!!!

Bullet Bob Hayes tops the list of 17 finalists with their positions, teams, and years active follow:

1. Bob Hayes – Wide Receiver – 1965-1974 Dallas Cowboys, 1975 San Francisco 49ers

2. Cris Carter – Wide Receiver – 1987-89 Philadelphia Eagles, 1990-2001 Minnesota Vikings, 2002 Miami Dolphins
3. Dermontti Dawson – Center – 1988-2000 Pittsburgh Steelers
4. Richard Dent – Defensive End – 1983-1993, 1995 Chicago Bears, 1994 San Francisco 49ers, 1996 Indianapolis Colts, 1997 Philadelphia Eagles
5. Russ Grimm – Guard – 1981-1991 Washington Redskins
6. Claude Humphrey – Defensive End – 1968-1978 Atlanta Falcons, 1979-1981 Philadelphia Eagles
7. Cortez Kennedy – Defensive Tackle – 1990-2000 Seattle Seahawks
8. Bob Kuechenberg – Guard – 1970-1984 Miami Dolphins
9. Randall McDaniel – Guard – 1988-1999 Minnesota Vikings, 2000-01 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
10. John Randle – Defensive Tackle – 1990-2000 Minnesota Vikings, 2001-03 Seattle Seahawks
11. Andre Reed – Wide Receiver – 1985-1999 Buffalo Bills, 2000 Washington Redskins
12. Shannon Sharpe – Tight End – 1990-99, 2002-03 Denver Broncos, 2000-01 Baltimore Ravens
13. Bruce Smith – Defensive End – 1985-1999 Buffalo Bills, 2000-03 Washington Redskins
14. Paul Tagliabue – Commissioner – 1989-2006 National Football League
15. Derrick Thomas – Linebacker – 1989-1999 Kansas City Chiefs
16. Ralph Wilson – Team Founder/Owner – 1960-Present Buffalo Bills
17. Rod Woodson – Cornerback/Safety – 1987-1996 Pittsburgh Steelers, 1997 San Francisco 49ers, 1998-2001 Baltimore Ravens, 2002-03 Oakland Raiders

The NFL Hall of Fame selection committee believes former Cowboys defensive end Charles Haley is one of the 25 best players not enshrined in Canton.  But Haley is finding it takes more than a record five Super Bowl rings to make the next step from Hall of Fame semifinalist to finalist.

For the fourth time in five years, Haley survived the reduction vote to 25 by the 44-member selection committee to become a Hall of Fame semifinalist. But for the fourth time in five years, Haley was eliminated in the final cut to 15 for the Class of 2009. To be elected, a finalist must receive a minimum positive vote of 80 percent.

BULLET BOB HAYES

His is a sad story.  Wish he was alive to get into HOF.  He got into trouble with the law when that was not a good things. Otherwise he would already have been in the HOF.

Robert Lee ("Bullet Bob") Hayes (December 20, 1942 – September 18, 2002) was an Olympic gold-medal sprinter turned American football wide receiver in the National Football League and was once considered the world's fastest man. Before professional football, Hayes was an American track and field athlete. He was a two-sport athlete in college where he excelled in both track and college football at Florida A&M University. Hayes was enshrined in the Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor.

In 1962, while still a student at Florida A&M, Hayes ran a new world record for the 100 yard dash with a time of 9.2 seconds. The next year he broke his own record with a time of 9.1, a record that would not be broken for eleven years (until Ivory Crockett ran a 9.0 in 1974). That same year, 1963, Hayes set the world best for 200 meters (20.5 seconds, although the time was never ratified) and tied the world record for the 220 yard dash with a time of 20.6 seconds (while running into an eight mph wind). Hayes was also the first person to break six seconds in the 60 yard dash with his indoor world record of 5.9 seconds. He was the AAU 100 yard dash champion three years running, from 1962–1964, and in 1964 he was the NCAA champion in the 200 meter dash. He would miss part of his senior year in college because of his 1964 Olympic bid for U.S. Gold.

At the 1964 Summer Olympics, in Tokyo, Hayes had his finest hour as a sprinter. First, he won the 100 m by tying the current World Record in the 100 m with a time of 10.0 seconds, even though he was running in lane 1 which had, the day before, been used for the 10km and this badly chewed up the cinder track. He also was running in borrowed spikes because one of his shoes had been kicked under the bed when he was playing with some friends and he didn't realize until he got there. This was followed by a second gold medal in the 4 x 100 meter relay, which also produced a new World Record (39.06 seconds).

His come-from-behind win for the US team was one of the most memorable Olympic moments. Jocelyn Delecour, France's anchor leg runner, famously said to Paul Drayton before the relay final that, "you can't win, all you have is Bob Hayes." Drayton was able to reply afterwards, "all you need..." The race was also Hayes' last as a track and field athlete, as he permanently switched to football after it.

The Dallas Cowboys drafted him in the seventh round of the 1964 NFL Draft, taking a chance an Olympic sprinter with unrefined football skills could excel as a wide receiver. The bet paid off, due to his amazing feats as a receiver, Hayes has been credited by many with forcing the way the rest of the NFL conducted pass defense (see zone defense below). His first two seasons were most successful, during which he led the NFL both times in receiving touchdowns.

In 1966 when the Cowboys played at Washington, Hayes caught nine passes for 246 yards. Earlier that same season he caught six passes for 195 yards against the Giants at the Cotton Bowl. Hayes' speed forced other teams to develop the zone defense since no single player could keep up with him. By spreading the defense out in order to contain Hayes, it allowed the Cowboys running game, with players like Don Perkins, Calvin Hill, Walt Garrison and Duane Thomas to flourish. Hayes returned punts for the Cowboys and was the NFL's leading punt returner in 1968 with a 20.8 yards per return average and two touchdowns including a 90 yarder against Pittsburgh. He was named to the Pro Bowl three times and All Pro four times. He helped Dallas win five Eastern Conference titles, two NFC titles, played in two Super Bowls, and was instrumental in Dallas' first ever Super Bowl victory in 1971, making Hayes the only person so far to win both an Olympic gold medal and a Super Bowl ring. Later in his career, as defenses improved playing zone and "bump and run coverage" was developed, Hayes' value as a decoy diminished. Hayes played one season for the San Francisco 49ers before retiring.

Hayes was the first player in the history of the Dallas franchise to surpass 1000 yards receiving in a single season, and he did that in his rookie year by finishing with 1,003 yards. Also during his rookie year, he led the team with 46 receptions and set franchise records for total touchdowns (13) and total receiving touchdowns (12). He finished his 11-year career with 371 receptions for 7,414 yards and 71 touchdowns, giving him an impressive 20 yards per catch average (both career touchdowns and yds per catch average remain franchise records.) He also rushed for 68 yards, gained 581 yards on 23 kickoff returns, and returned 104 punts for 1,158 yards and three touchdowns. To this day, Hayes holds ten regular-season receiving records, four punt return records and 22 overall franchise marks, making him one of the greatest receivers to ever play for the Cowboys.