Redskins great Joe Jacoby is again passed over for induction into NFL Hall of Fame
Washington Redskins great Joe Jacoby’s wait for induction into the NFL Hall of Fame will continue after he was passed over yet again Saturday night.
The 46-member selection committee met on Saturday to decide on which five of the 15 finalists they should elect for this year’s Hall of Fame class. But Jacoby – a three-time all-pro and member of the beloved “Hogs” offensive line that paved the way for Washington’s three Super Bowl victories – did not make the cut.
(The committee features a media representative from every NFL team and a select few members of the national media. Former Washington Times beat writer David Elfin serves as Washington’s representative.)
The 2016 Hall class includes Ed DeBartolo Jr., Tony Dungy, Brett Favre, Kevin Greene, Marvin Harrison, Orlando Pace, Ken Stabler and Dick Stanfel.
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Jacoby did move closer to induction — this was the first year he became a finalist for Canton. Four previous years his quest ended in the semifinal round. The 14 years before that saw Jacoby fail to receive consideration as one of the 25 semifinal candidates.
Jacoby and his supporters had hoped that he would become the sixth Hall of Fame member of the Joe Gibbs-led Redskins teams to enter the Hall of Fame. Gibbs received enshrinement in 1996. Running back John Riggins (1992), cornerback Darrell Green (2008), wide receiver Art Monk (2008) and fellow offensive lineman Russ Grimm (2010) are the others.
“It’s a bitter disappointment,” Gibbs said. “I really feel like in my heart that this guy belongs in the Hall of Fame. He was one of the mainstays in one of the best offensive lines to ever play. Joe went to four Super Bowls. He’s a leader. He meant a lot to our football team. He played one of the hardest positions in football, left tackle, and he played against some of the best people in football.”
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Jacoby acknowledged this week that although he hoped to enter the Hall, he understood that it’s hard for a lineman to find his way to Canton.
“There’s not a lot of statistical things an offensive lineman can throw up there to say, ‘This is what I did!’” Jacoby told The Post’s Dan Steinberg earlier this week. “The offensive lineman is not coached that way or trained up in that way. You have a task, and your job is for the running backs and quarterbacks, for them to grab all the headlines. It’s not for offensive linemen to be on the front page of the newspaper. That’s for quarterbacks and receivers. That’s not my personality.”
Signed by Washington as an undrafted free agent out of Louisville in 1981, Jacoby spent his entire NFL career with the Redskins.
A hulking 6-foot-7 and 305 pounds (big in any era, but especially during the 1980s), Jacoby was a powerful, punishing force in the trenches. His fellow linemen tell tales of him lifting defensive linemen off the ground and throwing them through the air as he cleared the way for Washington’s running backs.
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Then-Redskins offensive line coach Joe Bugel gave his charges the nickname “Hogs,” and the group of lunch-pail linemen accepted it with pride and went on to garner rock star status in the D.C. area. The Hogs had their images plastered on posters, T-shirts and bumper stickers. One group of fans celebrated the linemen by wearing plastic pig noses and dresses to games, calling themselves the Hogettes.
During the Redskins’ three Super Bowl winning campaigns, three quarterbacks (Joe Theismann, Doug Williams and Mark Rypien) started. However, the leaders of the Hogs (Jacoby, Grimm and center Jeff Bostic) started all three (as well as Super Bowl XVIII, which Washington lost to the Raiders in January 1984).
Jacoby started at left tackle in three Super Bowls and at right tackle in his final Super Bowl appearance (Washington’s win over Buffalo in 1992).
“Now I’m hoping that this guy has all the credentials and everything that it takes to be in the Hall of Fame,” Gibbs said. “I just hope that we’re closer now, and we get it done next year.”
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