Is Matthew Slater a Hall of Famer?

[Snake]

Matthew Slater, of the New England Patriots.

A WR from UCLA, drafted in the fifth round of the 2008 draft, has a total of 3 offensive touches in his career.

He's a 3x super bowl champion.
He's a 10x pro bowler (5x all pro).

He has 173 tackles in his 206 NFL games. 1 forced fumble.

He's considered the best gunner of his generation. If Hester is the best returner, Slater is his foil.

This exercise begs some questions:

1. Just because you get a lot of accolades (pro bowls), does that mean you're hall worthy?
2. How valuable can a gunner be? Hester got TDs. That's valuable. Is improving field position as a gunner by 2 or 3 more yards on average, even in the same universe insofar as value?

Curious what y'all think.

Oh yeah, some highlights.

[Cheb]

Can the story of the NFL be told without Matthew Slater? When was the last time you saw a player and said to yourself that he reminds you of Matthew Slater?

Dude is good at his job, don't get me wrong, but a Hall of Famer he is not. If he makes the shortlist of nominees, he should call that a win.

[Buc2]

Can the story of the NFL be told without Matthew Slater? When was the last time you saw a player and said to yourself that he reminds you of Matthew Slater?

Dude is good at his job, don't get me wrong, but a Hall of Famer he is not. If he makes the shortlist of nominees, he should call that a win.

Can the story of the NFL be told without [place name here].
I think there are guys in the HoF right now that don't fit that description.

[uscbucsfan]

Can the story of the NFL be told without Matthew Slater? When was the last time you saw a player and said to yourself that he reminds you of Matthew Slater?

Dude is good at his job, don't get me wrong, but a Hall of Famer he is not. If he makes the shortlist of nominees, he should call that a win.

Can the story of the NFL be told without [place name here].
I think there are guys in the HoF right now that don't fit that description.

I would say at least 1/4 of them.

[Snake]

Agreed. When I imagine a Ken Burns 10 part documentary on football, A good chunk are getting left out

[Terry Tate]

Can the story of the NFL be told without Matthew Slater? When was the last time you saw a player and said to yourself that he reminds you of Matthew Slater?

Dude is good at his job, don't get me wrong, but a Hall of Famer he is not. If he makes the shortlist of nominees, he should call that a win.

What is "The story of the NFL"?

Like others have said, by a very strict interpretation of that bit of criteria an awful lot of guys would not be in the Hall.

[Deja Entendu]

Can the story of the NFL be told without Matthew Slater? When was the last time you saw a player and said to yourself that he reminds you of Matthew Slater?

Dude is good at his job, don't get me wrong, but a Hall of Famer he is not. If he makes the shortlist of nominees, he should call that a win.

I don’t pay attention to gunners on other teams. I’m guessing 98% of fans are the same way (and I’m being generous). Coaches and players sure do though.

Because of that I won’t pretend to be qualified to answer about this dude and how he compares to his peers...

BUT anyone that is the best, or an all time great, at their job should recognized as such. If that’s this dude, then yep he should be in the Hall of Fame.

Now how do they make room for specialists when other deserving 3-4 down players get snubbed each year? Not my problem to figure out.

[acmillis]

Can the story of the NFL be told without Matthew Slater? When was the last time you saw a player and said to yourself that he reminds you of Matthew Slater?

Dude is good at his job, don't get me wrong, but a Hall of Famer he is not. If he makes the shortlist of nominees, he should call that a win.

What is "The story of the NFL"?

Like others have said, by a very strict interpretation of that bit of criteria an awful lot of guys would not be in the Hall.

This.
Richard Seymour, a HoF player… ehhh. The “story” can certainly be told without any mention of him.

[Doctor]

We let in kickers don't we?

[BearLandBucFan]

WHO!?!? Never heard of him. Not even in passing. He got 3 Rings because he was a Patriot not the other way around.

[Snake]

WHO!?!? Never heard of him. Not even in passing. He got 3 Rings because he was a Patriot not the other way around.

You’re an idiot, I’m sorry.

[King Bootz]

No

[BearLandBucFan]

WHO!?!? Never heard of him. Not even in passing. He got 3 Rings because he was a Patriot not the other way around.

You’re an idiot, I’m sorry.

Don't be sorry. Everyone is wrong some of the time.

[Bucsfan83]

Well, I mean he was in the pro bowl quite a but and all pro. The main question isn't if he was a big impact, but if he defined the position. Think Sapp / Barber.

[Snake]

I think he probably did define it. He’s the most accomplished gunner in history.

[Bucsfan83]

I think he probably did define it. He’s the most accomplished gunner in history.

Then HoF, whether it seems weird or not imo.

[MJW]

I think he probably did define it. He’s the most accomplished gunner in history.

I voted no because I respectfully disagree. Steve Tasker was that guy. But he's never going to get close because nobody cared back then (and nobody cares about teams that don't win titles, etc, etc.)

[uscbucsfan]

I think he probably did define it. He’s the most accomplished gunner in history.

I voted no because I respectfully disagree. Steve Tasker was that guy. But he's never going to get close because nobody cared back then (and nobody cares about teams that don't win titles, etc, etc.)

This is the correct answer in regards to best gunner...but maybe the Patriots help him get in.