Do you think Witten makes the HoF?

[JohnsKey19]

Originally Posted by joseephuss

Even some of the "air-it-out next gen" types don't put up the numbers that Witten does. Take Jermichael Finley for example. He is never asked to block and his best two seasons he produced 55 receptions in each. He only has 28 receptions so far this season. Witten easily out produces him.

Gronkowski and Graham are off to great starts to their careers, but is way too early to start extrapolating out how well they will produce the next 10 years. The same goes with trying to figure out if Witten will ever catch Tony Gonzales. Witten has to make up 6 seasons on Gonzales if Tony ever does retire. Gronk and Graham have to make up 7 years on Witten.

I agree. Let's see the Grahams and Gronks reach 7000 yds before we worry about them approaching the likes of Witten/Gonzalez. By the time Gonzalez, Witten and Gates are done, the bar will be set so high, it's going to be difficult for any TE to catch them. Gronk would be one guy to watch but losing Tom Brady in a few years may hurt his production.

[Meat-O-Rama]

I have no doubt about it.

Gate is nice and is productive when he is in the game, but he has missed so much time.

Witten has missed exactly one game in his pro career. Consistency and longevity are the keywords here.

[phildominator]

Originally Posted by joseephuss

Even some of the "air-it-out next gen" types don't put up the numbers that Witten does. Take Jermichael Finley for example. He is never asked to block and his best two seasons he produced 55 receptions in each. He only has 28 receptions so far this season. Witten easily out produces him.

Gronkowski and Graham are off to great starts to their careers, but is way too early to start extrapolating out how well they will produce the next 10 years. The same goes with trying to figure out if Witten will ever catch Tony Gonzales. Witten has to make up 6 seasons on Gonzales if Tony ever does retire. Gronk and Graham have to make up 7 years on Witten.

Only TE with a HOF chance is Tony Gonzalez.

Gronkowski/Graham/Vernon Davis are way too early, but if they end up posting similar numbers to Witten, they'll get the nod over Witten because of the hype.

[joseephuss]

Originally Posted by phildominator

Only TE with a HOF chance is Tony Gonzalez.

Gronkowski/Graham/Vernon Davis are way too early, but if they end up posting similar numbers to Witten, they'll get the nod over Witten because of the hype.

Gronk and Graham won't get the nod over Witten. He will be eligible for the HoF probably before those guys retire. He has been in the league 7 years longer than those guys. It won't be a choice between either Witten and Gronk/Graham. It will probably be a choice between Witten and Gates as they are contemporaries.

I don't think Vernon Davis has a chance. It is not too early to speculate about his chance at the HoF. He is already 7 years into his career and is only 2 years younger than Witten. His production is far off the pace of Witten and is not likely to improve dramatically with the 49ers.

[jayhouston12]

Yes, no question. first ballot as well

[JohnsKey19]

Originally Posted by Meat-O-Rama

I have no doubt about it.

Gate is nice and is productive when he is in the game, but he has missed so much time.

Witten has missed exactly one game in his pro career. Consistency and longevity are the keywords here.

That's what makes guys like Witten and Gonzalez special and HOF worthy. Throw Gates in there as well. They have been consistently productive for a long time.

Let's see where Gronk and Graham are in 5 years before we seriously give them any consideration. If they manage to make it to 7000-7500 yds and are still producing at a high level, then we'll see. Vernon Davis has no shot at this point. He'll be lucky to make it to 7000 before he retires.

When all is said and done Gonzalez will be somewhere around 15,000 yds and Witten maybe at 11,000, easily #1 and #2 on the all-time list.

[erod]

Originally Posted by Idgit

Shoe-in.

It's shoo-in.

And before you think I'm picking on you, I wrote it like you for YEARS before someone finally corrected me on it. LOL

[AdamJT13]

I don't know if it has been reported already, but with his 18 catches on Sunday, Witten became the first player in NFL history to have three games with at least 14 catches.

[Tricked]

Simple answer: Yes

Explained answer: Watch his career and ask yourself why this is even a question.

[Diogenes]

Originally Posted by Tricked

Simple answer: Yes

Explained answer: Watch his career and ask yourself why this is even a question.

As I've already stated, Witten should be a HOFer. But why is it a question? Because TEs are anything but automatic when it comes to making it into the Hall. When Shannon Sharpe retired, he held every major record for TEs, most by a wide margin. Not only that, Sharpe also had 3 Super Bowl rings. You can't have a better resume and he still did not make it in on the first ballot.

And then of course there's a case that could be made for a bias against Cowboys getting voted in.