Sharpe, Holmgren among Hall of Fame semifinalists, so what comes next?
Former Packers receiver Sterling Sharpe is one of three prominent ex-Packers once again on a list of 60 semifinalists in the "Senior" and "Coach/Contributor" category, eligible for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with the Class of 2024.
Packers coach Mike Holmgren, who led the franchise to two Super Bowls and one championship, is among those in the Coach/Contributor group, while 1930-1940s Packers standout Cecil Isbell joins Sharpe on the Senior list.
Their inclusion doesn't come as a surprise; all three made it one step farther in the process last year as finalists, and every 2023 finalist who didn't earn induction is back on this semifinalist list for 2024.
Wide receiver Mark Clayton, who played one year with the Packers in 1993 but primarily spent time with the Miami Dolphins, is also on the Senior list, as is Steve McMichael, a defensive tackle who spent the 1994 season with the Packers but spent the bulk of his career in Chicago.
What comes next in the Hall of Fame selection process?
A 12-person Seniors committee and 12-person Coach/Contributor committee will reduce the list to 12 names in each category by July 27. The Coach/Contributor group will meet again Aug. 15 to determine the name it will forward for induction consideration, and the Senior group will determine its three names Aug. 22.
The final choices still need to be evaluated separately and given approval by a 49-person Hall of Fame Committee. All four names forwarded last year from the Senior and Coach/Contributor committees earned that distinction, but that hasn't universally been the case. In 1997, for example, the Senior committee suggestion of Jerry Kramer was not approved for induction; the Packers great later earned induction but not until 2018.
Sharpe and Isbell have improved chances for the next two years
The 2023 class was the first of three years in which three players, instead of one, are forwarded to the Hall of Fame committee from the Seniors committee, meaning Sharpe and Isbell still have a particularly strong chance for two more seasons.
"Seniors" are defined as players whose careers ended in 1998 or earlier and are thus no longer eligible for "modern era" selection.
The other seven players who were also 2023 finalists last year in the Senior category (but not inducted) are once again semifinalists along with Sharpe and Isbell: quarterback Ken Anderson, linebacker Maxie Baughan, linebacker Randy Gradishar, offensive lineman Bob Kuechenberg, cornerback Eddie Meador, linebacker Tommy Nobis and cornerback Everson Walls.
Holmgren up against some big names
The Coach/Contributor committee still only gets one name to pass along.
Last year, Holmgren was one of 12 Coach/Contributor finalists, but Don Coryell was the selection. Holmgren remains on a list with some high-profile names, including TV pioneer Roone Arledge, owners Robert Kraft and Art Modell, former Broncos coaches Dan Reeves and Mike Shanahan, and Steelers executive Art Rooney Jr.
Holmgren led the Packers to two Super Bowls including a victory in Super Bowl XXXI, and served as Packers coach from 1992-98 while overseeing the resuscitation of a dynasty. He went on to coach the Seattle Seahawks and reach another Super Bowl thereafter. In 12 of his 17 seasons as head coach, his team made the playoffs, and he won two rings with San Francisco as an assistant coach.
More about Sterling Sharpe and Cecil Isbell
Sharpe made five Pro Bowls and three first-team All-Pro teams during his career, with 18 touchdown receptions in his final season standing alone as a franchise record until Davante Adams matched it in 2020.
But his career only lasted from 1988-94 on account of the career-ending neck injury. When he caught 108 passes in 1992 and 112 in 1993, he set new NFL single-season records both times, though those marks have since been obliterated under an NFL that began to emphasize the passing game in the '90s.
More: A look at the Green Bay Packers (and other Wisconsin connections) in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
More: 'Welcome to the Hall of Fame': Former Packers safety LeRoy Butler earns NFL's highest honor
Isbell, meanwhile, played halfback and defensive back from 1938-42, appearing in four Pro Bowls.
Some 2023 semifinalists not on this year's list
Lee Remmel, a longtime sportswriter for the Green Bay Press Gazette and director of public relations for the Packers from 1974-2004 before becoming Packers historian until 2007, appeared on the semifinalists list last year in the Coach/Contributor category but is not on the list this year.
The same is also true for former Packers scout Jack Vainisi, who identified numerous Hall of Famers and ushered them to Green Bay in the 1950s. He also advocated for the hire of Vince Lombardi to the vacant head-coaching position in 1959.
When is the Hall of Fame induction ceremony for the Class of 2023?
Wisconsin native Joe Thomas will be among those earning gold jackets at the induction ceremony Aug. 5 in Canton, Ohio.
Last year, Chuck Howley, Ken Riley and Joe Klecko were forwarded from the Senior Committee and earned induction; Riley was briefly an assistant coach with the Packers.
Along with Coryell, other members of the 2023 class are Ronde Barber, Darrelle Revis, Zach Thomas and DeMarcus Ware.
Prior to 2023, the Packers had one inductee three years in a row, with LeRoy Butler in 2022, Charles Woodson in 2021 and Bobby Dillon in 2020.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Sharpe, Holmgren among Hall of Fame semifinalists, so what comes next?
