In or Out: Predicting if 16 first-time Pro Football Hall of Fame nominees get into Canton

Wednesday the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced its 167 modern era candidates for consideration for the Class of 2025.

Among those candidates were 16 players who became eligible for the first time this year. According to ESPN, a screening committee will narrow the list to 50, then 25, then 15 finalists before the class is announced after the Super Bowl.

Here's our best guess of how the 16 fresh additions to the player pool will make it to Canton, Ohio.

First-ballot or later?

Eli Manning (QB): Yes - First-ballot. Hear me out. People want to believe Manning's inclusion would turn the Hall of Fame into the Hall of Mediocre, but you can't deny that there are already several players in Canton with less of an impression made on the league. Induction isn't just a numbers game because if it was then Philip Rivers would be a first-balloter too. Manning beat Tom Brady, the sport's GOAT, twice in the biggest game of the year. Yes, he had stellar defenses but he wouldn't have won two game MVPs if he weren't New York's singular factor in lifting the Lombardi Trophy.

Marshawn Lynch (RB): Yes - Not first ballot. "Beastmode" will certainly be in Canton - someday. His 10,413 career rushing yards put him just outside the league's all-time Top 25 but the effect his style of play had on the evolution of defenses was immeasurable. If his bust unveiling ceremony doesn't include Skittles then what are we even doing here?

Darren Sproles (RB/KR): Yes - Not first ballot. Sproles was an iconic player for his combined prowess as a rusher and return specialist. He sits seventh all-time in return yards and punt return touchdowns. He will be in Canton but there are several others who have been omitted previously that will edge him out in his first year of eligibility (Fred Taylor, Brian Mitchell, Shaun Alexander, Steven Jackson, etc.)

Demaryius Thomas (WR): Yes - Not first ballot. Thomas tragically passed away in 2021 but his legacy in the NFL is lasting. He certainly has a Hall-of-Fame-worthy career to consider including a Super Bowl championship and five Pro Bowl selections. It might take several years for him to be inducted but 9,763 career yards and 63 touchdowns are within the all-time Top 100.

Vernon Davis (TE): Yes - Not first ballot. Davis is 11th all-time in receiving yards by tight ends and will make it to Canton one of these years. But until legends of the game like Antonio Gates and Jeremy Shockey are given their busts, Davis will have to wait in line.

Delanie Walker (TE): No. Walker was a great player and tight end but by his numbers alone he probably won't warrant consideration by the committee no matter how long he's eligible. Only 5,888 receiving yards and 36 touchdowns just won't cut it, unfortunately.

Travis Frederick (C): Yes - Not first ballot. Frederick was one of the best centers the Dallas Cowboys ever had and was selected as a Pro Bowler five out of the seven years he played. He will see Canton soon but just not as a first-ballot selection. 2023 finalists Willie Anderson, Jahri Evans and others like Chris Snee, Jeff Saturday and Logan Mankins are ahead of him in line.

Ryan Kalil (C): Yes - Not first ballot. Kalil was a force at center in Carolina. He was selected to the Pro Bowl five times and voted First-Team All-Pro twice in 13 seasons. But like Frederick, there are just too many worthy names ahead of him that will push his Hall of Fame induction back a year or two.

Joe Staley (T): Yes - Not first ballot. Again, like Frederick and Kalil, the San Francisco 49ers modern legend is in a very saturated pool of players vying for the honor. Staley was a six-time Pro Bowler in 13 seasons and played in Super Bowl XLVII. Having 26 career receiving yards to his name might be a slight bump but it's more of a fun fact in this arena.

Marshal Yanda (G): Yes - First ballot. The eight-time Pro Bowler, two-time first-team All-Pro and Super Bowl XLVIII champion has the edge over the rest of the offensive linemen who are eligible for the first time. Baltimore's dominant offenses of the 2010s were due in part to Yanda's dominant blocking abilities.

Luke Kuechly (LB): Yes - Not first ballot. This one was tough. Kuechly was a seven-time Pro Bowler and five-time first-team All-Pro selection. He was also the 2012 Defensive Rookie of the Year and 2013 Defensive Player of the Year. A Super Bowl appearance in 2015 certainly bolsters his case to be a finalist but ultimately he'll probably get edged out by someone like NaVorro Bowman, Teddy Bruschi or James Harrison.

Terrell Suggs (LB): Yes - First ballot. Now, before you start coming at me with the pitchforks for picking Suggs over Kuechly, let's just take a look at a couple of things. Suggs was a seven-time Pro Bowler and voted first-team All-Pro in 2011. Where he has the edge over Keuchly and others is the longevity of his dominance and two Super Bowl rings in 2011 and 2019. Suggs was a pivotal cog in the stone wall that was the Baltimore defense which featured Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, sacking 73 different quarterbacks in his storied career.

Antoine Bethea (S): Yes - Not first ballot. Bethea was a three-time Pro Bowler and a Super Bowl champion in 2007. He had 25 career picks and 7 forced fumbles but it was his 995 solo tackles that should draw attention from the committee - just not this year.

Aqib Talib (S): Yes- First ballot. Another hard decision, Talib could very well see himself makeing it as a finalist but falling short of induction this year but I think there's enough there to convince the committee. He was a five-time Pro Bowler and first-team All-Pro in 2016, not to mention a Super Bowl champion in 2015. His 35 career interceptions and 10 touchdowns should also make a convincing argument.

Earl Thomas (S): Yes - Not first ballot. Thomas has the makings of a first-ballot induction but 2023 finalists Eric Allen, Rodney Harrison and Darren Woodson might edge him out in the final voting. A seven-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro selection, Thomas won Super Bowl XLVIII with Seattle in 2013 and was a member of the "Legion of Boom" on that defense. It could go either way with Talib or Thomas this year.

Adam Vinatieri (K): Yes - First ballot. This one is a no-brainer. Vinatieri was a three-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro kicker in 24 dominant seasons in the league. His career field goal percentage was 83.8 percent and 97.3 percent for extra points but he's best known for his clutch kicks sending New England to multiple Super Bowls and winning two in 2001 and 2003.