Giving Odds For The Coach/Contributor Hall of Fame List

 By John Turney 

For this exercise we give the odds as "Pretty Good"; "Decent"/"Fair"; "Poor/Low" with some exceptions that are self-explanatory. 

COACH/CONTRIBUTOR (29)

K.S. “Bud” Adams Jr.: In his 54 years as Founder, Owner, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of the Titans/Oilers franchise, Adams was an enduring figure in the NFL.

Odds—Fair

Roone Arledge: Television industry executive and producer whose creativity, leadership and technical innovations revolutionized the presentation of both news and sports.

Interesting name—Fair

C.O. Brocato: A scout for 40 years with the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Oilers/Tennessee Titans.

Odds—Low

Don Coryell: An innovative coach whose “Air Coryell” offense produced some of the most dynamic passing attacks in NFL history.

Now that the category may include coaching AND contributions, that is to say, voters can in theory interpret it that way his odds go up in our view. Odds—Pretty good

Otho Davis: Served as associate athletic trainer for the Baltimore Colts in 1971 and the head athletic trainer for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1973 to 1995.

Odds—Poor

Ralph Hay: Owner of the Canton Bulldogs from 1918-1922 and hosted the NFL’s formational meeting in his automobile dealership in downtown Canton.

Odds—Fair

Mike Holmgren: Head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1992-98 and the Seattle Seahawks from 1999-2008.

His name is picking up momentum but still in our view he's lower in the queue than some other coaches. Odds—Fair

Frank “Bucko” Kilroy: Worked in player personnel and scouting for the Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys. He was the Patriots’ general manager from 1979 to 1982 and vice president from 1983 to 1993.

He's been in the mix for a while, but still, he never can make it over the top. Odds—Fair

Eddie Kotal: Scout for the Los Angeles Rams from 1947-1961 and was one of the first to scout Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Very interesting name. Did a lot of good in the day. Odds—Decent

Robert Kraft: Owner, Chairman and CEO of the New England Patriots since 1994. His teams have won six Super Bowls.

He's getting closer and closer the further behind his legal troubles are in the rear view mirror. Odds—Pretty good. 

Rich McKay: General Manager, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1994-2003; general manager, Atlanta Falcons, 2003-08; president/CEO, Atlanta Falcons, 2008-present.

Low in the queue. Odds—Poor

John McVay: Joined the 49ers in 1979 as the team's director of player personnel and spent 21 seasons with the Club, ultimately presiding over five Super Bowl-winning seasons as vice president/director of football operations.

Odds—Low

Art Modell: Owner of the Cleveland Browns from 1961-1995 and Baltimore Ravens from 1996-2011.

Was close to induction in the modern list for the Hall of Fame which was hard to do in the old format which had coaches and owners competing with players. Still, he's fallen out of favor in recent years. Odds—Fair

Clint Murchison Jr.: Founder of the Dallas Cowboys (1960) and owner through 1983.

Another interesting name. Odds—Low

Buddy Parker: Head coach of the Chicago Cardinals (1949), Detroit Lions (1951-56) and the Pittsburgh Steelers (1957-1964).

Has been gaining momentum as a coach who won a pair of NFL titles and was an innovator as a defensive coach. Odds—Pretty good

Carl Peterson: President, General Manager and CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs from 1989-2008.

Odds—Low

Dan Reeves: Head coach of the Denver Broncos (1981-1992), New York Giants (1993-96) and the Atlanta Falcons (1997-2003).

A lot of wins but four Super Bowl losses. Maybe will get in someday. Odds—Fair

Lee Remmel: A sportswriter and columnist for the Green Bay Press-Gazette for 29 years, Green Bay Packers director of public relations from 1974 to 2004 and Packers historian from 2004-07.

Odds—Low

Art Rooney Jr.: Employed with the Steelers since 1961, from 1964 through 1986, worked in the Steelers’ Scouting Department. Currently a Steelers Vice President and member of the Board of Directors.

Odds—Low

Marty Schottenheimer: Head coach of the Cleveland Browns (1984-88), Kansas City Chiefs (1989-1998), Washington Redskins (2001) and the San Diego Chargers (2002-06).

Like Dan Reeves, a lot of wins but unlike Reeves no Super Bowl appearances, Odds—Low

Jerry Seeman: Line Judge, Head Linesman, Referee and Director of Officiating from 1975-2000.

Odds—Low

Mike Shanahan: Head coach of the Los Angeles Raiders (1988-89), Denver Broncos (1995-2008) and the Washington Redskins (2010-13).

Two Super Bowl wins but seems to us to be low in the queue. Odds—Low

Clark Shaughnessy: Head coach of the Los Angeles Rams from 1948-49 and longtime assistant coach for the Washington Redskins from 1944-47 and Chicago Bears from 1951-1962.

Like Don Coryell as a duel coach/contributor candidate seems like his odds go up. Odds—Fair

Seymour Siwoff: Owner and President of Elias Sports Bureau, the official statisticians of the NFL, from 1952-2019.

If you like numbers Siwoff is your guy. Anything that has to do with statistics started with him. Still, he does not seem to be getting any Hall of Fame traction. Odds—Low

Amy Trask: CEO of the Oakland Raiders from 1997-2013.

Interesting name as a groundbreaking pioneer but her on-field results were not spectacular, Odds—Low

Jim Tunney: NFL official from 1960-1991. Worked as a Field Judge from 1960-67 and a Referee from 1968-1991.

There is no way two officials will go in back-to-back years but someday Tunney has a shot at the Hall of Fame. Odds—Low

Jack Vainisi: Scout for the Green Bay Packers from 1950-1960 as well as Business Manager from 1959-1960.

Deserves a long look but this year will likely come up short. Odds—Low

Lloyd Wells: Scout for the Kansas City Chiefs from 1963-1974. First full-time African American scout in the NFL.

Also deserving but likely not his year. Odds—Fair.