Hines Not Among the Best of His Era
The Football Hall of Fame announced their finalists for the 2024 class the other day. Once again, James Harrison and Hines Ward did not make the cut.
Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne, and Torry Holt are the wide receivers that were voted in as finalists. Devin Hester is another wide receiver in the finals. But Hester voted in primarily on his prowess as a kick returner. Ironic since the NFL has neutered kickoffs so that sometimes they are not even televised. On more than one occasion, the commercial break starts after a score. Then they return to airing the game with the teams already lined up at the 25-yard line.
Many Steelers fans are upset. But some note that there is a backlog of better receivers that block his path to a gold jacket. It’s not good enough that he impacted the game so much that the NFL changed the rules because of his aggressive blocking. These detractors believe Hines was a good receiver. Just not among the best of his era.
Regular Season Statistics
Hines Ward is not that far off from the finalists with regular season statistics. The three finalists at wide receiver do have more Pro Bowl and First-Team All-Pro honors than Ward. But Ward was a Second-Team for three seasons.
| Regular Season | All-Pro | ||||||||||
| Name | From | TO | REC | R/Yards | Catch% | Yds/G | Success% | TD | PB | First Team | Second |
| Hines Ward | 1998 | 2011 | 1000 | 12083 | 64.2 | 55.7 | 55.2 | 86 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| Andre Johnson | 2003 | 2016 | 1062 | 14185 | 61.1 | 73.5 | 52.9 | 70 | 7 | 2 | 2 |
| Reggie Wayne | 2001 | 2014 | 1070 | 14345 | 62.4 | 68.0 | 55.5 | 82 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
| Torry Holt | 1999 | 2009 | 920 | 13382 | 59.0 | 77.4 | 52.6 | 74 | 7 | 1 | 1 |
Hines has the best catching percentage. He lags in receiving yards per game. But is second in success percentage. The Pro Football Reference considers receptions gaining 40% of the yards required on first down, 60% of the yards required on second down, and 100% of yards required on third or fourth down as successful. The percentage is determined by dividing it by the total number of targets. And his 86 touchdowns exceeded the three finalists.
The finalists gained more receiving yards and yards per game.
However, the Steelers ran more than passed during Ward’s time in Pittsburgh. From 1998 to 2011, the Steelers passed 6,762 times versus 6,990 running plays. They only passed on 49.2 percent of their offensive plays.
Andre Johnson played 12 years for the Houston Texans. Then finished his career with a season apiece in Indianapolis and Tennessee. The teams Johnson played for passed 7,165 times versus 6,358 runs. That’s passing 53 percent of the time. Reggie Wayne spent his entire career with the Colts except for a final season in Jacksonville. His teams passed 8,137 times to 5,768 runs for 58.4 percent. Similarly, Torry Holt, who spent his entire career with the Rams, enjoyed teams that passed 6,287 times to 4,437 runs for 58.6% of the time.
Hines Ward’s statistics are worthy, considering his entire career spent with a run-first team versus the passing offenses the three finalists enjoyed. He would have easily matched or exceeded the statistics accumulated by the three finalists. And may have scored many more touchdowns.
Head-to-Head Competition
Hines Ward faced the three wide receiver finalists nine times during the regular season. Some say that is not a fair comparison since they are playing against each other’s defenses and not competing directly against each other. However, head-to-head competition is a good measure to see what players step up to help their team’s cause. Pittsburgh won five of the nine matchups.
| Head-to-Head | ||||||||||||
| Name | Games | REC | R/Yards | Yds/G | TD | W | L | REC | R/Yards | Yds/G | TD | |
| Andre Johnson | 3 | 18 | 168 | 56.0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | Hines Ward | 13 | 179 | 59.7 | 4 |
| Reggie Wayne | 4 | 21 | 297 | 74.3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | Hines Ward | 17 | 225 | 56.3 | 1 |
| Torry Holt | 2 | 10 | 215 | 107.5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Hines Ward | 11 | 149 | 74.5 | 2 |
| Combined | 9 | 49 | 680 | 75.6 | 2 | 4 | 5 | Hines Ward | 41 | 553 | 61.4 | 7 |
When you combine the statistics of the three finalists, there is one factor that sets Hines apart. He scored seven touchdowns compared to just two by the finalists when playing on the same field.
The Playoffs
The playoffs are what every NFL team is aiming for during the regular season. It is the tournament that ends up awarding the Lombardi Trophy to the champion of the entire league each year. Pro Bowl and All-Pro recognitions are based on regular-season play. Almost all of the lobbying and voting is concluded before the season’s end. But performance in postseason play should be highly considered when determining who should have their busts adorning the Hall. After all, winning and achieving a championship is what the whole competition is about.
| Postseason | |||||||||
| Name | Games | REC | R/Yards | Catch% | Yds/G | Success% | TD | SB MVP | |
| Hines Ward | 18 | 88 | 1181 | 63.8 | 65.6 | 58.1 | 10 | 1 | |
| Andre Johnson | 4 | 25 | 358 | 61.0 | 89.5 | 53.7 | 1 | 0 | |
| Reggie Wayne | 21 | 93 | 1254 | 59.2 | 59.7 | 54.0 | 9 | 0 | |
| Torry Holt | 10 | 47 | 630 | 58.0 | 63.0 | 48.1 | 4 | 0 | |
The two statistics that jump out to me are the success percentage and scoring. Only Reggie Wayne comes close to Ward’s 10 touchdowns in postseason play. Of course, they both played many more playoff games than either Johnson or Holt. But Hines Ward is also the only one whose success percentage improved from the regular season to the postseason. That’s significant since teams are in a win-or-nothing mode in the playoffs.
Plus, Hines is the only one to be named a Super Bowl MVP. A first-team all-pro selection means you are the best at your position during the regular season. But a Super Bowl MVP identifies you as the best player among everyone on the field for the most important game of that season.
CONCLUSION
Hines Ward matches up well against the three finalists in the regular season as a receiver when you consider he performed in a run-first offense. He still managed to outscore the three wide receiver finalists who had the advantage of passing offenses.
But Hines Ward distances himself once you consider the playoffs. His scoring continues. Plus, he has a better rate of successful receptions that actually improved in the playoffs as the others declined. And is the only Super Bowl MVP among them.
Outside of receiving. None of the three finalists are known for blocking or otherwise impacting the game. Hines Ward single-handedly caused the NFL to change its rules due to his reversing roles with defenses and becoming the hunter rather than the hunted.
Whoever is presenting the arguments to the Hall of Fame voters on Hines Ward’s behalf is ineffectual. It is a vote, and the three receivers who are finalists are very worthy. But I’m just an average Steelers fan who believes Hines Ward deserves to be a finalist more than the three wide receivers voted ahead of him. Had Hines Ward had a better champion arguing his cause, the electors would easily have seen why he merits inclusion over the others. Hines Ward deserves a gold jacket. Did I convince you?
Your Song Selection
I always like to include a bit of music. I focused on Hines Ward. But my heart was stolen when electors froze out James Harrison and Hines Ward from the final round of the 2024 Hall of Fame ballots. Here is Stolen Heart performed by HRVY.
