Shane Lechler Among Nominees For Pro Football Hall Of Fame Class Of 2023

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced their 129 nominees for the upcoming Class of 2023, and 10 Las Vegas Raiders made the initial list.

The following are the 10 Raiders nominees:

CB Eric Allen
LB Navorro Bowman
DI La’Roi Glover
P Shane Lechler
CB Albert Lewis
CB Terry McDaniel
WR Andre Rison
ED Pat Swilling
ED Justin Tuck
G Steve Wisniewski

The most notable of the names listed is Lechler, who played 18 seasons in the NFL, with 13 of them donning the Silver and Black. He is a first-time Hall of Fame nominee and has arguably the best case of being inducted from the group.

Special teams players rarely ever get enshrined in Canton, but Lechler was a game-changer during his playing days. Named to an All-Pro team nine times and making seven Pro Bowls, Lechler was able to flip the field on a consistent basis. He currently holds the NFL record for average yards per punt at 47.6 yards, surpassing fellow Raiders punter Ray Guy who was named to the Hall of Fame back in 2014.

Unlike Lechler, the rest of the names on the list have been nominated previously though Wisniewski and McDaniel are the only two that are largely remembered for their time with the team. Lechler faces an uphill climb to make the Class of 2023, and it could be several years before he is eventually named to the Hall of Fame. However, the precedent exists for a punter-only player, so perhaps it’s only a matter of time until Lechler’s nod is a reality.