He will join Tony Boselli, LeRoy Butler, Sam Mills, Richard Seymour, Cliff Branch, Art McNally and Dick Vermeil.īut it’s no stretch to say that the former 49ers star wouldn’t be there without the “Zoom 6.” (Don’t worry, Young is working on a better nickname.) Young will go in with the Class of 2022 at the induction ceremony in Canton on Saturday. It is no spoiler to report that the virtual table-pounding worked. “Robbie is a dog because I knew there was going to be just a battle that day. The mere sight of Robbie Tobeck on the screen gave him flashbacks. I have mass respect for John Randle - and I do think he’s a Hall of Fame player - I just think that B.Y., in my 14 years, was the best defensive tackle I’ve come across, bar none.”Īt times, he paused the recording to give himself time to expand on what he just heard. Gogan was quick to echo: “I agree with Adam’s top three players. I’d say the best defensive players were inside, and I said, ‘John Randle, Bryant Young and Warren Sapp.’ Those three and in that order.” He did that several times early in the call, such as when Adam Timmerman said: “People ask me about the best guys I ever played against, and I played from 1995 to 2006. Other times, the words of respect hit Young in the heart so hard that he lets out an “ mmm-hmmm” that rumbled like low thunder. Young chuckled at that line, as well as many others, such as when Mark Schlereth called him a “sumbitch” and meant it as the highest possible compliment. “We know who should be in the Hall of Fame just from getting our asses whipped out there.” “We know what’s right,” longtime lineman Kevin Gogan said into the camera not long after the video gets rolling. The Athletic sat with the four-time Pro Bowler at the Marriott near the San Francisco airport to document his reaction. On this June 8 afternoon, however, there was no escape. “Yeah, it’s uncomfortable to hear people talk about me like that,” Young reasoned.īryant Young finally earned his place in Canton in his 10th year of Hall of Fame eligibility. But he’s never actually opened it, like a Christmas gift still under the tree in summer. He’s even had the recording in his possession for months. Young is generally aware of the call and its impact on his enshrinement. The resulting recording was shipped to all 49 members of the Hall of Fame selection committee. For the benefit of voters who needed a forearm shiver to their senses, the linemen spent 47 minutes on Zoom sharing their admiration for Young and swapping tales of fear and respect. Without Young’s authorization or even his knowledge, they joined forces on Dec. They are all players he faced multiple times. Each beefy face is familiar to Young as someone he used to pummel on Sundays. Paused on the screen before him now are six former NFL offensive linemen. All that’s left for Young to do is press “play” and watch the Zoom call that changed his life. Fourteen dominant seasons in a 49ers uniform, a franchise-record 89 1/2 sacks and a selection to the NFL All-Decade Team of the 1990s accounted for that.īut how Young got selected? That’s the big reveal. Oh, the former interior lineman already knew why he got voted in. While the others might have been catching up on email or checking their presentation one last time, Young was the only one here logging on to find out how he got into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. SAN FRANCISCO - Like a few scattered others in this vast hotel lobby, Bryant Young found a quiet place to sit with a laptop and a venti-sized coffee from Starbucks.
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