10 biggest snubs from the Pro Football Hall of Fame

7. Hall of Fame snubs: Tommy Nobis

These days, the Atlanta Falcons are more known for a certain meltdown in Super Bowl LI than for their earlier history. Of course, the club that was born in 1966 didn’t reach the playoffs until 1978. Their franchise has made two Super Bowl appearances during its tenure in the NFL but came up short both times and in totally different ways to the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots, respectively.

In ’66, the expansion Falcons used the first overall pick in the draft to select linebacker Tommy Nobis from the University of Texas. He toiled for 11 seasons with the franchise and was named to the Pro Bowl in each of his first three pro campaigns as well as five of his first seven years in the league. He saw his seasons in 1969 and ’71 both cut short due to injury. All told, he started 132 of the 133 games he played in and showed his nose for the football courtesy of 12 interceptions and 13 fumble recoveries.

Nobis’ final year came in 1976, which means he never played in a postseason game. But he was one of the great players at his position and a major factor before injuries began to take their toll.