MINNEAPOLIS – Brian Dawkins packed up his family and flew to Houston last February for what he had hoped would be the announcement that he had made the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
After coming up short, he swore he wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.
“This will be the last time I come out here beforehand,’’ he said last year. “Next year, I’ll just wait (at home).’’
The Eagles kind of spoiled his stay-at-home plan, though, by making it to Super Bowl LII. But this time, Dawkins’ wait didn’t end in disappointment.
The former Eagles All-Pro safety found out Saturday that he had made the Hall of Fame, along with yet another former Eagle, Terrell Owens.
Dawkins and Owens joined linebackers Ray Lewis and Brian Urlacher, and wide receiver Randy Moss as the five members of the Hall’s Class of 2018. Also voted in were senior finalists Robert Brazile and Jerry Kramer and longtime NFL personnel executive Bobby Beathard, who made it as a contributor.
“This is tremendous news and I could not be more proud of Brian,” Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said in a statement released by the team. “Being inducted into the Hall of Fame is an honor he truly earned. He epitomized everything we love about the game of football. His intensity, his passion, his love of the game and his leadership were always dialed in at the highest possible level. He connected in every possible way with the city of Philadelphia and our legion of Eagles fans across the country. We cannot wait to celebrate his special night in Canton this summer.”
The eight will be inducted into the Hall of Fame in Canton next summer.
This was Owens’ third year as a Hall finalist. He was eliminated in the first 15-to-10 reduction vote both of the last two years. But many voters clearly softened their stance on him this time.
Dawkins, who now is a football operations executive for the Eagles, advanced to the final 10 last year in his first year of eligibility, but was eliminated in the 10-to-5 reduction vote.
He played 16 seasons in the NFL, 13 with the Eagles. For most of his career, he was one of the most impactful players in the game. He was a nine-time Pro Bowler and a five-time All-Pro and was named to the NFL’s all-decade team of the 2000s.
Dawkins is the only defensive player in history – at any position – with more than 25 interceptions (37), sacks (26) and forced fumbles (36).
He was the straw that stirred the drink on those great Jim Johnson defenses of the early 2000s. Johnson basically built his entire defense around Dawkins and his skill-set.
In the 10 seasons Dawkins played for Johnson, the Eagles finished in the top seven in the league in points allowed six times, and in the top 10 in total defense six times. He was the most important chess piece in Johnson’s masterful blitz schemes. Former Eagles coach Andy Reid has called Dawkins the best blitzing safety he’s ever seen. Not ever coached. Ever seen.
“The uniqueness of his timing was unmatched,’’ said former cornerback Troy Vincent, who played eight seasons with Dawkins. “Science says you can’t line up at the deep half, 15 yards from the line of scrimmage, and perfectly time up the snap in the A or the B gap. Science says you can’t do it.
“Jim would say to him, ‘Show it. Show the blitz. Then run back to the middle of the field and then come back down and make the play.’
“I saw him do this week in and week out. I used to see Jim in the meetings. It was dark. His back would be to us. I would see him shake his head when he watched one of those plays.’’
Even though he never weighed more than 190 pounds, Dawkins was a physically dominating player who could line up all over the field, cover running backs or tight ends or even the other team’s top wide receiver. He was one of the most feared tacklers in the game. His 36 force fumbles are 17 more than Lewis had in his career.
“Brian was one of the best players I’ve ever coached against,’’ former Packers and Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said. “You had to prepare for him because he was such an integral part of what they did.
“If you had some inkling of knowing where he was going to be, you might have a little bit of a chance of making something work.’’
“Brian morphed into whatever Jim wanted him to be on a weekly basis,’’ Jon Gruden said. “He could cover. He could blitz. He could play man or zone. And he was an excellent one-on-one tackler. It was just hard to create yards after the catch with him in there. He was a vicious football player and a great competitor. He was the key to that defense.’’
Owens played just two seasons with the Eagles – their Super Bowl season in 2004 and 2005. The second season ended badly with him getting suspended by the team for insubordination.
He tore ligaments in his ankle and broke his leg in 2004, but came back six weeks later and caught nine passes for 122 yards in the Eagles’ 24-21 loss to the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXIX.
Owens was one of the most prolific pass-catchers in league history. He had 1,0078 receptions, 15,934 receiving yards and 153 touchdown catches. He is second all-time in receiving yards and fifth in touchdown catches.
“Terrell Owens is one of the most talented and exciting wide receivers ever to play the game and he is very deserving of this honor,” Owens said. “We appreciate all of his contributions to the league and to one of the finest seasons in the history of our franchise.”
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