SAN FRANCISCO — Former Falcons kicker Morten Andersen, who was a finalist for the third consecutive year, was not selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2016, which was announced Saturday on the eve of Super Bowl 50.
On Jan. 17, 1999, Andersen made a 38-yard field goal to give the Falcons a 30-27 victory over Minnesota in the NFC Championship game. The kick sent the franchise to its only trip to the Super Bowl.
Andersen is the leading scorer in NFL history with 2,544 points. He still holds the record for scoring in the most consecutive games (360). Only one player, Jason Elam, is within 100 games of that consecutive games scoring mark.
George Blanda, Lou “The Toe” Groza and Jan Stenerud are the only kickers in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
Andersen, a native of Copenhagen, Denmark, was drafted by the Saints in the fourth round of the 1982 draft. He played for the Saints (1982-94), Falcons (1995-2000, 2006-07), New York Giants (2001), Chiefs (2002-03) and Vikings (2004).
Former Falcons quarterback Brett Favre, who was a bust until he resurrected his career in Green Bay, was selected on his first time on the ballot.
Favre was drafted by the Falcons in the second round (33rd overall) in 1991 out of Southern Mississippi. Favre signed a three-year, $1.4 million contract, but struggled with off-the-field issues before being traded to the Green Bay Packers.
Former coach Jerry Glanville didn’t want Favre and preferred that the team draft Browning Nagle. General manager Ken Herock, the vice president of personnel, made the draft decisions and picked Favre.
Favre’s first pass with the Falcons was an interception returned for a touchdown and in his four passes during his career here, he was intercepted twice and didn’t complete a pass. On his other snap, he was sacked for an 11-yard loss.
Favre’s major issues were off the field, mainly with alcohol. Favre missed the team picture, a couple of other functions and habitually was late to meetings.
After the disastrous 1991 season, the Falcons traded Favre to Green Bay for a first-round pick, which would turn out to the 19th pick in the ’92 draft and ended up being running back Tony Smith, also out of Southern Miss. Smith never did much for the Falcons.
Favre, under the guiding hands of coach Mike Holmgren, offensive coordinator Sherman Lewis and quarterbacks coach Steve Mariucci, went on to turnaround the Packers and guided them to a Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI.
He was an 11-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro. He’s second on the all-time passing yards list with 71,838 yards, which trails only Peyton Manning (71,940).
Also, running back Terrell Davis, who played at the University of Georgia, was a finalist, but was not tabbed for enshrinement. He played for the Broncos from 1995-2001.
Others elected for enshrinement include:
- Tony Dungy, coach — 1996-2001 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2002-08 Indianapolis Colts.
- Kevin Greene, linebacker/defensive end — 1985-1992 Los Angeles Rams, 1993-95 Pittsburgh Steelers, 1996, 1998-99 Carolina Panthers, 1997 San Francisco 49ers.
- Marvin Harrison, wide receiver — 1996-2008 Indianapolis Colts.
- Orlando Pace, offensive tackle — 1997-2008 St. Louis Rams, 2009 Chicago Bears.
Senior finalists, Ken Stabler and Dick Stanfel, also were elected for enshrinement.
Former San Francisco 49ers owner Edward DeBartolo Jr. was elected as a contributor to the game. A contributor is someone who’s made outstanding contributions to professional football other than players and coaches.
DeBartolo was the owner of the 49ers from 1977-2000 and was credited with the funding the minority coaching internship program that was started by former coach Bill Walsh.
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