LaDainian Tomlinson got his bust in Canton this year. Next year he wants an old teammate to join him.
Tomlinson said on PFT Live that if he could put one player in the Hall of Fame Class of 2018, “It would be Lorenzo Neal, my fullback.”
Neal is on the list of 108 nominees in the Class of 2018, and Tomlinson believes that Neal belongs in Canton.
“When you look at this guys career, a guy that blocked for seven 1,000-yard rushers, the model of consistency when you talk about a fullback. He’s the ideal guy of what you want in a Hall of Famer, what he did on the field but also off the field,” Tomlinson said.
Neal was a four-time Pro Bowler and two-time first-team All-Pro, but realistically, the Hall of Fame voters are unlikely to induct any modern fullback because in the NFL of the 21st Century, fullbacks are part-time players. Tomlinson said there ought to be at least one modern-era fullback in Canton.
“Fullbacks don’t get the credit they deserve. There isn’t a fullback in the Hall of Fame and I think it’s time for us to start putting fullbacks in the Hall of Fame, and he deserves it,” Tomlinson said.
Neal getting into Canton is a long shot, but he has a powerful voice lobbying for him.