The case for Miami Dolphins linebacker Zach Thomas as Hall of Fame decision day arrives | Opinion
Zach Thomas will be in that hotel room on Miami Beach on Saturday waiting for that glorious knock on the door or that dreaded phone call, and he won’t be alone because the family will be there, and the film crew the Miami Dolphins are sending will be there, and multiple team dignitaries will be there to share in his moment.
The hope here is that the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 48 selectors will include Thomas when they pare the current list of 15 finalists to no more than five names. Because he deserves it.
And it simply seems right.
“Honestly, it’s not something he ever brought up much in the past, but it’s the highest honor for someone like Zach because since he was a little boy his dream and passion was football and it would be amazing to see that,” wife Maritza told me recently.
“It would be perfect because it is the 54th Super Bowl and he wore No. 54. And the game’s in Miami and he played for the Dolphins. So I feel like it’s meant to be.”
If it happens, Thomas will get a knock on his door from Hall of Fame president David Baker. If he gets a phone call instead, well, that’s not what anyone wants.
And if things are right and fair and everything is taken into account, Thomas should get that knock. At least I think so.
If it were about statistics, Zach Thomas would make it into the Hall of Fame. Because he has better statistics than most of the linebackers already in the Hall of Fame.
If it were about personal accomplishments, Zach Thomas would make it into the Hall of Fame. Because his seven career Pro Bowls and five career All Pro selections are more than most of the linebackers already in the Hall of Fame.
If it were about lifting up teammates, making them better, Zach Thomas would make it into the Hall of Fame. Because Thomas studied opponents so well, he often knew the other team’s play before the ball was snapped.
And, this just in, it’s easier to play defense when one of your teammates is telling you what your opponent is going to do — before the play is run.
“His play inspired his teammates and he set the tone every time he stepped on the field,” former Dolphins teammate and current Seattle Seahawks coach Larry Izzo said.
If making the Hall of Fame were about making big plays and playing hard on every down, again, Zach Thomas would make it. Because that just came naturally to him.
“He was as valuable on third down when our opponents were throwing the football as he was on first down when they were running it,” former Dolphins coach Dave Wannstedt said. “To have a player who understands the game and then is able to carry it to the field for 60 minutes is very, very unique and Zach is one of the few who falls into that category.”
All these things don’t just suggest Zach Thomas should make it into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. They demand it.
But it may not be quite so unequivocal to everyone. All the other finalists are worthy of serious consideration. it’s a good class.
And every voter brings his or her own bias into the room where the debate happens.
Some voters want to make sure certain position groups get at least one finalist in because this year there are three offensive linemen, four defensive backs, and three receivers vying for attention.
Some voters believe players who were finalists before deserve preference because they’ve been waiting in line longer.
I respectfully don’t adhere to those unwritten rules. As one of the 48 selectors, I vote for the players I believe are most worthy, regardless of position or how long they’ve been trying to get in.
And Dan Marino agrees with me because he thinks Thomas should get in ahead of some of those others.
“I appreciate that you select the greats for induction into the Hall of Fame,” Marino wrote in a letter to selectors. “I have no doubt Zach Thomas belongs among those greats. I have no doubt he belongs in the Hall of Fame.”
And if this is where you’re expecting Thomas to say something to state his own case to convince voters or anyone else, then you’re going to be disappointed. Because that’s not what Thomas is like.
It was actually never what he was like. The first time I spoke with Thomas in the summer of 1996 he told me how someone at his barbershop at first confused him for a high school player rather than a professional. He told me about how he had no neck.
And that was already after he’d proven himself to the point Jimmy Johnson cut Jack Del Rio, one of his favorite veterans, because the newly selected Hall of Fame coach knew after one preseason game Thomas was better.
Zach Thomas was humble and sometimes even self-deprecating then. He remains that way now.
“My entire career I never looked ahead, I was always in the moment, just trying to get the best out of myself,” Thomas said. “And so now it would be all ego if I say I deserve it ... I know this is a great honor and, shoot man, whatever happens I feel like I’ve already won.”
This story was originally published January 31, 2020 at 8:00 AM.
