88 #DaysToFootball

Four members of the Hall of Fame and one future Canton enshrinee grace today's list:

5. Lynn Swann, WR
1974-1982 (Pittsburgh); Three Pro Bowls; One First-Team All-Pro; Super Bowl X MVP; NFL All-1970s Team; Pro Football HOF class of 2001; 5,462 career receiving yards




Four-time NFL champion Lynn Swann may be best remembered for his outstanding 161-yard performance in Super Bowl X, a record that has only been bested by three players in the 40 years since. Part of the highly-regarded 1974 Steelers draft class, Swann played in all four Pittsburgh Super Bowls in the '70s. In addition to the score that gave the Steelers a two-score lead in their second title game, Swann caught a third-quarter touchdown pass in Pittsburgh's Super Bowl XIV win against the Rams. The USC alum likely would be a footnote in NFL history - he never had a 1,000-yard receiving season and averaged just six touchdown catches a year - if not for the fact that he played for arguably the best team in the Super Bowl Era. Thus, Swann eventually joined seven of his Steeler teammates in Canton 19 years after his retirement.

4. Michael Irvin, WR
1988-1999 (Dallas); Five Pro Bowls; One First-Team All-Pro; Pro Football HOF class of 2007; 11,904 career receiving yards

(Greg Trott/Associated Press)

Number 88 has long been worn by the Dallas Cowboys' top wide receiver, but none wore it better than three-time Super Bowl champion Michael Irvin. The former Miami Hurricane is one of just 14 players to have caught multiple touchdown passes in a Super Bowl game; his two-score performance in Super Bowl XXVII helped Dallas rout the Bills 52-17. Irvin's finest NFL season came in 1995, the year the Cowboys won their third championship in a four-year span. In his fifth straight Pro Bowl season, the dynamic receiver set new career highs in catches (111), yards (1,603) and touchdowns (10). Irvin was a crucial part of the playoff run that cemented the Cowboys' dynasty status. He scored two touchdowns in that year's NFC Championship, a 38-27 win over the Packers. His 76-yard contribution helped Dallas beat Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XXX. Irvin is one of six members of the 1990's Cowboys currently enshrined in Canton.

3. Marvin Harrison, WR
1996-2008 (Indianapolis); Eight Pro Bowls; Three First-Team All-Pro; NFL All-2000s Team; Pro Football HOF class of 2016; 128 career receiving touchdowns (fifth all-time)




Marvin Harrison was on the receiving end of the most explosive quarterback-wide receiver tandem of all time. The Syracuse product hooked up with future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning for 114 of his 128 touchdown receptions, putting them well ahead of any other duo. Harrison also ranks in the top 10 of all players in NFL history with 14,580 career receiving yards. His dependability in the Colts' offense earned Harrison eight straight trips to the Pro Bowl; in all eight of those seasons he caught at least 10 touchdowns. After not being able to make Philadelphia's 53-man roster in 2009, Harrison officially retired from the NFL. Seven years later he donned his gold jacket; Harrison will get to welcome his long-time quarterback into Canton in four years.

2. Tony Gonzalez, TE
1997-2013 (Kansas City, Atlanta); 14 Pro Bowls; Six First-Team All-Pro; NFL All-2000s Team; 15,127 career receiving yards (fifth all-time)



Tony Gonzalez is, without a doubt, the greatest tight end in NFL history. The durable workhorse missed just two games in his 17-year professional football career; by the time all was said and done, he was the all-time NFL leader in yards and touchdowns caught by a tight end. A quick look will reveal Gonzalez to be the only tight end in the top 25 of the league's all-time receiving yards list; the Cowboys' Jason Witten, with 11,888 through the 2016 season, ranks just 27th. Gonzalez was at his best in 2004, when he caught a league-high 102 passes for a career-best 1,258 yards. The former Cal basketball standout introduced the world to a new breed of tight end, one that was just as reliable catching passing as he was blocking. The innovation he brought to the game, coupled with his stats which are unmatched by any to have played his position before him, will be more than enough to ensure Gonzalez enshrinement in the Hall of Fame two years from now.

1. Alan Page, DT
1967-1978 (Minnesota); Nine Pro Bowls; Six First-Team All-Pro; 1971 NFL MVP; Pro Football HOF class of 1988; 19 career fumble recoveries

(Neil Leifer/Sports Illustrated)

In the 60-year history of the NFL MVP award, only two defensive players have earned the honor. The first was Alan Page, a menacing member of the Vikings' Purple People Eaters. Page terrorized opposing offenses throughout his career, reaching the Pro Bowl in all but his first and last full seasons in Minnesota. The Notre Dame alumnus was a member of all four Vikings teams to reach the Super Bowl, recording a sack in each of his last three appearances. After finishing his career wearing the number 82 in Chicago, Page returned to his hometown of Canton when he joined the Hall of Fame. The extremely successful defensive lineman also spent more than three decades practicing law; in 2015 he retired after 22 years as an associate justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court.