Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

I remember a year or two back on this forum, I asked if someone who isn’t a coach or a player could be nominated for Hall of Very Good.

Well if you had said I could nominate such people then one person I would have nominated would have been the broadcaster Howard Cosell.

He’s not in the Hall of Fame as a broadcaster (I hear that he didn’t get along with the league or the media in his later years), but on his career objectively, he was a great, memorable broadcaster, one of the most memorable in the history of NFL broadcasting.

Also, when I was in junior high, one of my Dad’s old college friends, and a teacher I knew both told me I reminded them of Howard Cosell.

Depending on who you ask that’s either a compliment or an insult, but I lean towards the former.

to be clear no broadcasters or members of the media are in the PFHOF, they could be as contributors but none have even been finalists BUT they are eligible for the annual Rozelle Media award given out not by the Hall but by PFWA, which is presented during the August ceremony and name added on plaque that is in the PFHOF-but no gold jacket, no Hall ring, no bronze bust-hence are not in the PFHOF or referred to as PFHOFers..and no disrespect intended as the award is a great honor and yes Cosell is one of the most notable omissions from that honor

PaulPFHOF wrote: ↑Wed Sep 09, 2026 12:42 pm to be clear no broadcasters or members of the media are in the PFHOF, they could be as contributors but none have even been finalists BUT they are eligible for the annual Rozelle Media award given out not by the Hall but by PFWA, which is presented during the August ceremony and name added on plaque that is in the PFHOF-but no gold jacket, no Hall ring, no bronze bust-hence are not in the PFHOF or referred to as PFHOFers..and no disrespect intended as the award is a great honor and yes Cosell is one of the most notable omissions from that honor

The 2021 PFRA Convention was held at the HOF, in a room right next to the busts. On Friday night, I snuck over during a break. (John Madden would be disappointed to know that none of the busts were talking to one another.) When wandering out of the room, I saw the plaque listing all the Rozelle Award winners, and took a picture of it. You can see the room of busts in the background.

That picture came in handy. The year before, Joe Buck won the Rozelle Award, and Troy Aikman broke the news on a preseason broadcast, but he made it seem like Buck was being inducted into the Hall of Fame. So whenever someone on social media commented or complained that Buck was a Hall of Famer, I just put up that picture and said "Joe Buck is on this plaque to the left. Troy Aikman has a bust in the room on the right. They are not the same."

The closest to a media person, though he got voted in as a scout for the Steelers, was Bill Nunn ...

At least under the current (new) rules, the only contributor I can see getting elected into PFHOF would be Robert Kraft and not even sure when that happens. As they are going to complete with 13 players + 1 coach, and voters are largely going to favor players plus top coaches over any contributor-and we have evidence of that back in the many years of PFHOF elections when contributors did not have their own separate path to election, few got elected in over player finalists. And yes I am also aware that the Hall broadened their definition of contributors that allow candidates with varied background as contributors (candidates who were former players and also coaches/GMs/scouts or in media...etc.), and I still don't think that's going to make any difference in how unlikely they will be elected.