Butch_Stearns's Blog

The Patriots have announced the three nominees for this year's Hall of Fame. The three players are Tight end Ben Coates, Running back Jim Nance, and Center Jon Morris. Only one player will be voted in. Who do you think should be inducted later this year?

You get the chance to vote and choose the winner. Their will only be one inductee this year. You can vote on the Patriots web site (www.patriots.com) until July 4th. When you go there, it will explain the process to you and also talk about the new Hall at Patriots place that will open later this year.

This year's winner will become the 13th Patriots Hall of Famer joining Bruce Armstrong, Nick Buoniconti, Gino Cappelletti, Bob Dee, Steve Grogan, John Hannah, Mike Haynes, Jim Lee Hunt, Stanley Morgan, Steve Nelson, Vito "Babe" Parilli and Andre Tippett.

I am honored to be one of the 27 members of the nomination committee that voted on these three finalists and while most of the conversations that take place among our committee should remain private, there are a few thoughts I can share with you. Right now and for the foreseeable future the Patriots plan on inducting only one Hall of Famer per year. There has been much discussion about keeping the honor of being a Patriots Hall of Famer special and not letting everyone in, so to speak. However, we have also had many discussions about recognizing and not forgetting the older Patriots. Patriots players become eligible for nomination once they have been retired for four years. Think about a handful of years from now when these current Patriots become eligible (i.e. Troy Brown, Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel, Tom Brady etc..). The concern is that the older Patriots may be forgotten about. So we have had some discussions about possibly inducting more than one Patriot in years to come or possibly separating the voting by years or generations.

Anyway, as I said, I am truly honored to be a member of this committee and I know I speak for the other members of the committee and for the Patriots when I say that what makes this special is that you get to vote for the winner(s). So have at it. And for more about the Hall at Patriots Place and about these nominees. And check out Bob Kraft's interview:

Your thoughts?

Butch