Tomorrow morning on NFL Network we will learn the 25 (or a few more, with ties) semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024. When Devin Hester is named to the list, there will be plenty of fans and media members who will treat it as a huge celebration.
It is not.
Rather, it would be a huge outrage if he isn’t.
That’s because Hester has made the finalist round (top 15) in each of his first two years of modern-era eligibility. Since the semifinalist era, which started in 2004, only one player has reached the finalist stage in his first two years and dropped back to the semis, much less out of the semis entirely.