Pro Football Hall of Fame 2017 eligible players led by Jason Taylor, LaDainian Tomlinson

Saturday night featured the NFL Honors awards show, which included the announcement of the 2016 induction class for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Eight players, coaches, or owners were given the ultimate recognition of the contributions to the game: linebacker / defensive end Kevin Greene, wide receiver Marvin Harrison, quarterback Brett Favre, quarterback Ken Stabler, offensive tackle Orlando Pace, guard Dick Stanfel, coach Tony Dungy, and owner Edward DeBartolo, Jr. While those eight will not be inducted until August, we can now start looking forward to the 2017 election for the Hall of Fame, which will include several potential first-year eligible players.

Brian Dawkins, safety, Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos - Dawkins spent 13 years with the Eagles, from 1996 to 2008, then three years with the Broncos, 2009 to 2011. Primarily playing free safety during his career, Dawkins played in 224 career games with 221 starts, during which he recorded 1,131 tackles, 37 interceptions with two touchdowns, 120 passes defensed, 36 forced fumbles, 19 fumble recoveries with one touchdown, and 26 sacks. He was selected to the Pro Bowl nine times and was a four time First-Team All-Pro selection.

Tommie Harris, defensive tackle, Chicago Bears, San Diego Chargers - Harris played seven seasons with the Bears (2004-2010) followed by one year with the Chargers (2011). He played in 117 games with 91 starts. He recorded 226 tackles with 31.5 sacks, one interception, six forced fumbles, and seven fumble recoveries. He was selected to three Pro Bowls.

Chad Johnson, wide receiver, Cincinnati Bengals, New England Patriots - Johnson played from 2001 to 2010 with the Bengals then spent one year with the Patriots in 2011. He attempted to play the 2012 season with the Dolphins, but was released in training camp and never made another appearance. During his 11 year career, Johnson caught 766 passes for 11,059 yards with 67 touchdowns. He was selected to six Pro Bowls and was a two-time First-Team All-Pro selection.

Larry Johnson, running back, Kansas City Chiefs, Cincinnati Bengals, Washington Redskins, Miami Dolphins - Johnson spent seven seasons with the Chiefs, playing from 2003 to 2009, then spent the second half of the 2009 season with the Bengals, before a year with the Redskins (2010), and the Dolphins (2011). Johnson played in 85 career games with 55 starts, recording 1,427 carries for 6,223 yards with 55 touchdowns. He caught 154 passes for 1,373 yards with six touchdowns. He was selected to two Pro Bowls with one First-Team All-Pro selection. He led the league in carries in 2006 with 416 rushing attempts.

Thomas Jones, running back, Arizona Cardinals, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Chicago Bears, New York Jets, Kansas City Chiefs - Jones was a journeyman running back playing for five different teams in 12 years, and never staying for more than three in one city. He started with the Cardinals from 2000-2002, then spent the 2003 season with the Buccaneers, followed by the 2004-2006 seasons with the Bears, 2007-2009 with the Jets, and 2010-2011 with the Chiefs. He carried the ball 2,678 times for 10,591 yards with 68 touchdowns over that span. He also caught 308 passes for 2,023 yards with three touchdowns. He was selected to one Pro Bowl.

Olin Kreutz, center, Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints - Kreutz spent 14 years in the league, 13 with the Bears (1998-2010) and one with the Saints (2011). He played in 195 career games with 187 starts, all at center. He was named to six Pro Bowls with one First-Team All-Pro selection.

Matt Light, offensive tackle, New England Patriots - Light was a stalwart for the Patriots offensive line from 2001 to 2011, starting 153 of the 155 games in which he played. His performance at left tackle earned him three Pro Bowl selections, with one First-Team All-Pro selection.

Derrick Mason, wide receiver / returner, Tennessee Titans, Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, Houston Texans - Mason played for eight years with the Titans, from 1997 to 2004, then moved to the Ravens from 2005 to 2010, splitting his final season with the Jets and Texans. He played in 230 games with 169 starts, recording 943 receptions for 12,061 yards with 66 touchdowns. As a returner, he averaged 8.7 yards per return with two touchdowns on punts and 22.4 yards per return with one touchdown on kickoffs. He was selected to two Pro Bowls and was a one time First-Team All-Pro selection.

Donovan McNabb, quarterback, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins, Minnesota Vikings - McNabb played 11 years for the Eagles from 1999 to 2009, then spent a year each with the Washington Redskins and the Minnesota Vikings. He played in 167 games, with 161 starts, in his career, recording a 98-62-1 record as the starting quarterback. McNabb threw 5,374 passes in his career, with 3,170 completions, giving him a 59.0-percent completion rate. He tallied 37,276 career passing yards, with 234 touchdowns and 117 interceptions, giving him an 85.6 career passer rating. He ran 616 times in his career, picking up 3,459 yards with 29 touchdowns. He was selected to the Pro Bowl six times.

Joey Porter, linebacker, Pittsburgh Steelers, Miami Dolphins, Arizona Cardinals - Porter started his career with the Steelers, playing eight years for them from 1999 to 2006, then three years for the Dolphins (2007-2009) before ending his career after two years with the Cardinals (2010-2011). He played in 188 career games, with 1717 starts, recording 665 tackles, 98 sacks, 12 interceptions with one touchdown, 46 passes defensed, 25 forced fumbles, and 10 fumble recoveries with two touchdowns. He was selected to four Pro Bowls and was a one-time First-Team All-Pro selection.

Bob Sanders, safety, Indianapolis Colts, San Diego Chargers - Sanders played for the Colts from 2004 through 2010, with one final season with the Chargers in 2011. He appeared in 50 games, recording six interceptions, 16 passes defensed, two forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries with one touchdowns, 3.5 sacks, and 302 tackles. He was selected to the Pro Bowl twice, along with being a two time First-Team All-Pro selection. He was named the AP Defensive Player of the Year in 2007.

Jeremy Shockey, tight end, New York Giants, New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers - Shockey spent his first six seasons with the Giants, from 2002 to 2007, then three years with the Saints (2008-2010) and a final season with the Panthers in 2011. He played in 136 games with 129 starts, recording 547 receptions for 6,143 yards with 37 touchdowns. He was named to four Pro Bowls and was a one time First-Team All-Pro selection.

Jason Taylor, defensive end / linebacker, Miami Dolphins, Washington Redskins, New York Jets - Taylor played 13 years for the Dolphins (1997-2006, 2009, 2011), with one year each for the Redskins (2008) and the Jets (2010). He played 233 games, with 199 starts, primarily at defensive end, though he did play linebacker for parts of his final three years. He recorded 139.5 career sacks (6th all time), with 775 tackles, 8 interceptions with three touchdowns, 77 passes defensed, 46 forced fumbles, and 29 fumble recoveries with 6 touchdowns (1st all time). He was selected to six Pro Bowls and was a three-time First-Team All-Pro selection. He was named the Defensive Player of the Year in 2006 and the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2007.

LaDainian Tomlinson, running back, San Diego Chargers, New York Jets - Tomlinson spent nine years with the Chargers (2001-2008), then spent two years with the Jets (2010-2011). He played in 170 games, with 155 starts, recording 13,684 rushing yards (5th all time) on 3,174 carries with 145 touchdowns (2nd all time). He also caught 624 passes for 4,772 yards, with 17 touchdowns. His total touchdowns (162) ranks third all time, and his 18,456 yards from scrimmage is fifth all time (seventh all time in all purpose yards). He was selected to four Pro Bowls, and was a three-time First-Team All-Pro selection. He was named the league MVP in 2006, as well as the Walter Payton Man of the Year that season.

Hines Ward, wide receiver, Pittsburgh Steelers - Ward spent his entire 14 year career, from 1998 to 2011, with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He appeared in 217 career games, with 190 starts, with 1,000 career receptions (10th all time) for 12,083 yards, and 85 touchdowns. He was named to four Pro Bowls.

Ricky Williams, running back, New Orleans Saints, Miami Dolphins, Baltimore Ravens - Williams spent three seasons with the Saints (1999-2001), then seven with the Dolphins (2002-2003, 2005, 2007-2010), and finally a year with the Ravens (2011). In a career broken up by a one-year retirement and suspensions for marijuana use, Williams played in 147 games with 83 starts, carrying the ball 2,431 times for 10,009 yards and 66 touchdowns. He caught 342 passes for 2,606 yards with eight touchdowns. Williams was selected to one Pro Bowl and one First-Team All-Pro selection. He led the league in rushing attempts twice and in rushing yards once.