Alan Faneca misses out on Hall of Fame selection once again

The NFL officially announced the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2019 on Saturday night and once again former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman Alan Faneca failed to make the final list.

A finalist for induction for the fourth year in a row, Faneca has lost out to a group that includes first ballot selections Tony Gonzalez, Ed Reed and Champ Bailey along with Ty Law, Kevin Mawae, Pat Bowlen, Gil Brandt and Johnny Robinson.

With Mawae winning his place in the hall this year, it is no surprise to see that the voting committee did not put through a second offensive lineman in the same class, but there will be many who question the choice of the Seattle Seahawks center over Faneca. Although Mawae played three more season, he received less Pro Bowl selections, the same number of All-Pro honors and never played in a Super Bowl.

Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette presented the case for Faneca’s enshrinement and it would be fair to say that the parts of his speech that were made public were far from inspiring. Hopefully, the voters are not overly swayed by the quality and passion of the candidates presenters, or lack thereof.

Considering Troy Polamalu is eligible for induction in 2020, there is a good chance that there will be better news for Pittsburgh fans around this time next year, with the iconic safety a good bet to be a first ballot selection. Hopefully, it will be a double celebration along with Faneca.