Harry Carson - Hall of Fame

Hall of Fame

Carson did the one thing no defensive player ever gets enough credit for, even though it's the first thing every defensive coach talks about with his team every week: he defended the run.

— Peter King, member of the Pro Hall of Fame Board of Selectors, on why it took so long for Carson to be inducted.

Carson was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006. His selection came after years of outspoken criticism of the Hall of Fame selection process, where his principal criticism was that the vote is done by the media, not players and coaches. In 2004, Carson asked to have his name taken off the ballot.

Despite previously stating that due to his frustration at not being elected he wanted his name removed from the ballot, when elected to the Hall of Fame in 2006 Carson appeared and gave an induction speech. Carson later commented on the selection, saying he was humbled by the selection but noting:

"The Hall of Fame will never validate me. I know my name will be in there, but I take greater pride in the fact that my teammates looked at me as someone they could count on. I still remember, and I will remember this for the rest of my life, the Super Bowl against Denver. We had three captains — me, Phil Simms and George Martin. But when it came time for the coin toss before the game, I started to go out and looked around for those guys. Bill Parcells said to me: 'No. You go. Just you.' And that was about the coolest feeling I've ever had in the world — going out to midfield for the Super Bowl, as the lone captain. There were nine Denver Broncos out there, and me. Just me. An awesome responsibility. The greatest respect."

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