National Football League

Kenny Easley elected into the Hall of Fame - about damn time

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 8:59 p.m. ET

Fansided, Keith Myers/FanSided via 12th Man Rising

Kenny Easley, the standout strong safety from those great 80s Seattle Seahawks defenses, was finally selected for the NFL Hall of Fame.

Seattle Seahawks Ring of Honor member Kenny Easley got some long-overdue recognition today. Easley will be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame as a part of the class of 2017.

He’s In! Congratulations to The Enforcer, @easleyforce5, for being elected to the @ProFootballHOF!#PFHOF17 #GoHawks #Seahawks pic.twitter.com/GkbQcAW8mL

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) February 5, 2017

This one should have been obvious. That begs the question: “Why did it take so damn long?”

Easley is the best strong safety to ever play the game, with all due respect to Ronnie Lott. Even Lott agreed, and actively campaigned for Easley to finally get this honor.

"I'm vicious. No doubt about it. I play the game in a vicious manner." – Hall of Fame Safety @Easleyforce5 pic.twitter.com/BfGdLiM70S

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) February 5, 2017

The issue for Easley is that he had a short career. A kidney issue (which Easley attributed to the massive amount of anti-inflammatory medication he was given by Seahawks’ doctors) ended his career after just 7 seasons.

In those 7 seasons, Easley was first team All-Pro three times. in 1984 he was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year after grabbing 10 interceptions that season. No one has topped that total since then. Two of those interceptions were returned for touchdowns.

.@ProFootballHOF @Seahawks Kenny Easley addresses media. “I will never get this feeling out of my heart.” pic.twitter.com/E4jdVkTXZT

— Joe Horrigan (@JoeHHOF) February 5, 2017

There really is no reason for his selection to have taken so long. This selection should have been a no-brainer. If good-but-not-great players who play a song time, like Jerome Bettis, can get into the Hall of Fame, than the truly great performers should be in as well.

Congrats Kenny! This is a long-overdue honor.