Top 30 NFL players not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame

13. WR Sterling Sharpe

Wide receiver Sterling Sharpe was part of a first-round wide receiver class in 1988 that included Pro Football Hall of Famers Tim Brown and Michael Irvin.

In seven seasons, he played and started all 112 regular-season games and totaled 595 catches for 8,134 yards and 65 scores. He was named to the Pro Bowl five times and earned All-Pro honors on three occasions. In 1992, he broke the NFL single-season reception total (held by Art Monk) with 108 catches and also led the league in receiving yards (1,461) and TD grabs (13). A year later, he became the first player to total 100-plus receptions (112) in consecutive seasons.

“He was the star,” explained former Packers’ head coach and 49ers’ assistant Mike Holmgren (via Hall of Fame voter Clark Judge of Talk of Fame Two), “one of the few bright spots in Green Bay when I went in there. I had the privilege of being around and coaching Jerry Rice, who is acknowledged to be the best receiver ever…and Sterling would be No. 2. I mean, he’s right up there had a neck injury not ended his career early.

“We went in there, and we were still finding our way, and he caught 100 balls with a young quarterback. He could do anything he wanted, and I’m surprised he hasn’t gone in sooner.”

Tight end Shannon Sharpe, Sterling’s younger brother, gave us one of the most stirring enshrinement speeches in Pro Football Hall of Fame annals in 2011. Could he one day return to Canton for another ceremony?