Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue will be the two finalists in the “contributors” category for the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2017.
Peter King, a member of the Hall of Fame selection committee, reports that the two were chosen as finalists today.
Jones has three Super Bowl rings and a long career as one of the NFL’s most ambitious owners for taking on new business opportunities and generally making the NFL bigger and better. Some voters, however, may think the Cowboys simply haven’t had enough success for Jones to warrant Hall of Fame inclusion: Most people think the three championship teams were built more by Jimmy Johnson than by Jones, and since Johnson isn’t in the Hall of Fame, Jones may not be worthy either.
Tagliabue’s accomplishments as a commissioner include growing the league and maintaining labor peace, something that looks even more impressive in hindsight as his successor, Roger Goodell, has struggled to stay on the same page as the players and their union.
The Hall of Fame selection committee will vote on Jones, Tagliabue, seniors committee nominee Kenny Easley and a group of 15 other finalists to be named later on the day before the Super Bowl.