Joe Jacoby and other Washington Football Hall of Fame snubs

Brian Mitchell: If the NFL truly believed that special teams were on a par with offense and defense as some analysts and coaches like to say, B-Mitch would be in. He has extraordinary all-purpose yardage and was the heart and soul of special teams for years – not just as a return specialist but in all phases. He only made one Pro Bowl, but was 1st or 2nd team All Pro three times. If the NFL had a dedicated Pro Bowl spot for a special teamer during his career, he would undoubtedly have a more attractive resume.

Gene Brito: Brito was the best player on some very bad teams in the ‘50s. The defensive end was a 5-time Pro Bowler (almost certainly would have been selected to six straight had not owner George Preston Marshall’s stinginess caused him to defect to another league in 1954), and one of the most popular players of his era.

Gary Clark:  Clark made four Pro Bowls and was an All Pro once. He retired high up on the NFL list for receptions and yardage. But those numbers look pale compared to the modern stats put up by receivers in this pass-friendly era. And he was somewhat overshadowed by his fellow wideout Art Monk.

London Fletcher: After Jacoby, this is the guy I would most go to bat for. Not because I think he was a better player than Clark or Brito or B Mitch – but because the things he did are tragically undervalued by league pundits. Fletcher was known for two things throughout his long career – about half of which was spent in Washington. He was an iron man who never missed a game, and he made tackles. Constantly. Every year. Every game. London Fletcher did the one thing most fundamental to the art of defensive football. He got guys on the ground. Durability and tackling ought to be valued more highly, and if they were, Fletcher would have more than four Pro Bowl appearances. He still is credited with the second most tackles in NFL history. The players ahead of and behind him (Ray Lewis and Derrick Brooks) are both in the Hall of Fame.

But the biggest snub in Washington football history does not involve the Hall of Fame. It concerns a different league honor – the All Decade teams.  For the 1960s, the NFL selected two split ends and two flankers for All Decade designation. Those terms are no longer in use. In most systems today, the split end is called the X, and the flanker is called the Z. But the point is, the league no longer makes any distinction between the roles when assigning honors. That’s largely due to the fact that the players and the roles have become so interchangeable.

The two flankers selected for the NFL all-decade team of the 1960s were Cleveland’s Gary Collins and Green Bay’s Boyd Dowler. I don’t mean to denigrate either. Both were very good players. Collins was a touchdown machine, and Dowler was as steady as they come over a long career.

But Washington in the 1960s had a flanker named Bobby Mitchell. Neither Collins nor Dowler was Bobby Mitchell. The original B-Mitch played one more season than Collins and two fewer than Dowler. He crushed both of them in total receptions and in receiving yards. He had more Pro Bowl selections. He had more All Pro selections. He trailed Collins by five receiving touchdowns, but if you consider his 26 rushing and return touchdowns, he crushes him there too.

Bobby Mitchell is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Collins and Dowler are not, and no one is calling for their inclusion. But it still irks me that Mitchell didn’t get that All Decade honor. It could be because his teammate, Charley Taylor was one of the selections at split end and the league wanted to spread the wealth around. If that’s the rationale, that is one weak argument – kind of like the Monk-Clark logic mentioned above.

Anyway, the Jacoby omission can still be addressed, and I suspect it will be one day. Mitchell will never be on an All Decade team and that is a shame. But back to our trivia question: what former Washington player did get chosen as a 1st team All Decade performer but is not in the NFL?

That would be Mike Nelms, who was the 1980’s All Decade kick returner. That, in and of itself, is kind of stupid, because we all know – at least those of us who had the pleasure of watching him – Mike Nelms was only a somewhat above average kick-off returner. On the other hand, he was among the greatest punt returns who ever played – never calling for a fair catch, never fumbling, always going forward. I suppose the voters wanted a way to honor both Nelms and Billy “White Shoes” Johnson, and Johnson in the ‘80s hardly ever returned kick-offs. I guess I shouldn’t complain.

But I will anyway. So apologies to Seth Joyner and Jack Ham and Donnie Edwards. London Fletcher was my favorite No. 59 of them all.