Bob Hayes was one of the greatest athletes in history, an Olympic gold medalist, the fastest man in the world in the 1960s and a good wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys.But now that he's a seniors committee nominee for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, it must be said: He doesn't merit induction in Canton.
Hayes took the NFL by storm as a rookie in 1965, catching 46 passes for 1,003 yards and leading the league in touchdown catches with 12. In 1966 he was even better, with 64 catches for 1,232 yards and a league-leading 13 touchdowns.
But then something happened: Opposing coaches realized that they'd never be able to match up a defensive back one-on-one with Hayes, so they started to employ zone defenses. And that pretty much worked. Hayes' receiving yards steadily decreased, and after being a Pro Bowler in each of his first three NFL seasons, he never was again.
Hayes was an important player in football history; he changed the game by forcing teams to use zone defenses. But he was also a one-dimensional player who basically had one skill -- "go long" -- and didn't become a complete receiver.
Hayes provided lots of exciting highlights on the field, and he's a fun guy to see on NFL Films. But while he deserves his spot in the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame, he was just a good football player, not a great one.
Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Great Article MDS
You mentioned several things that Bob Hays did and how he changed the game. You mentioned man to man coverage and how he made teams use a 'zone' against him. You compare him to other players at the time he played and if my reading is right. He was better at that position than any other reciever in the game because they were forced to create a coverage just for him. Then you went on to say how he didn't have the numbers to make the Hall. I am a devoted Giants fan, but Bob Hayes-vs-Homer Jones was a thrill to watch. Comparisons were made on a weekly bassis and Bob Hayes was a force to be reckoned with. Put away your ridiculous numbers and get a man who was responsible for changing defenses into the Hall of Fame where he belongs.
ITS A SHAME , TRUELY A NICE PERSON, AND A GREAT FOOTBALL PLAYER.
I am wondering if this writer belives Barry Bonds should be in the H.O.F. On what basis does this writer say an individual should make it into the H.O.F.? There are many Offensive Lineman that make it to the H.O.F. But how many of them have caused coaches to create Defensive schemes to defend against "1" player. True, Bob Hayes retired a tad before I was old enough to understand football, I am 46 at the time of this post. But I am a devout Cowboys fan and have many videos about the Cowboys history. Jim Kelly, who lost 4 Super Bowls, should he be voted into the H.O.F., did Kelly change the face of the game in anyway? The writer of this article needs to look beyond the stats and see what affect Bob Hayes had on the NFL during his time.
Doesn't merit induction into Canton? One-dimensional player? You obviously weren't alive when Bob Hayes played or you grew up a Steelers fan. The man was a Pro Bowler the first three seasons, and should have been for his fourth and sixth seasons! He scored 10+ touchdowns in five different seasons, has greater career numbers in receiving yards and TD's than Lynn Swann, and CHANGED the way football was played. Not many players can claim that. If it weren't for his off-the-field problems, the anti-Cowboys bias wouldn't have been able to keep him out. I'm glad he's getting another chance, it's just a shame he isn't alive to see it. After they fix the ommission of Bullet Bob, they can start working on getting Drew Pearson in!
i was born in 1983 and probably have no real merit to comment on this, but i want to agree w/ JHawkey. if this guy was the best of his day and responsible for the rise of the zone defense, then he is probably worth the Hall of Fame nod.
SMassie, I see I have a kindred spirit. If you were able to look at some of the blogs that have appeared, somehow the Cowboys get involved. Check out the blog about "Stop picking Larry Johnson". Anyway, I am old-school, I feel that the NFL lost alot after that 1982 strike, and football just isn't the same since the '70's. Bradshaw and Staubach are two of the greatest QB's that ever played the game. Not taking anything away from Montana. But in those days, players played. Jack Youngblood played a playoff game with a broken leg. Players should be inducted not on stats alone or SB wins or loses (see Jim Kelly), but also their affect on the NFL and what they accomplished all-around. Bob Hayes made teams created defensive schemes. Not bad for a WR. Also, I appreciate what you said about Drew Pearson, he was my favorite Cowboy, during his playing days, I cannot list how many "Big Plays" he was involved in. Kudos.
You know who belongs in the Hall of Fame and gets screwed every year by the commie-itty?? RUSS FRANCIS!!!!!
How about Jerry Kramer!!! He threw many more than the just the greatest block in NFL championship history, and remains a class act supporting the game and the league today.
Michael,
You've got your facts wrong. His 2nd and 3rd best seasons for catches per game were his 4th and 5th years in the league. He was top 5 in yards per game for 6 straight seasons (Top 10 seven straight seasons). Top 5 in TDs in 6 out of 7 seasons. In his 6th and 7th seaons in the league he averaged 26.4 ypc and 24 ypc respectively.
The Cowboys offense during this 7 year period was 1st in the league in offense 3 times and second another time, yet none of their skill players from the late 60s are in the Hall (and only one lineman). Bob Hayes and the attention he drew was one of the main reasons for this success even when he wasn't catching the ball.
Of course, the Cowboys during this period also had a tone of team success with 6 straight Division championships, 4 conference champion ship game appearances, 2 Super Bowl appearances, and 1 Super Bowl title.
While arguments could be made for Meredith and a few others for placement in the Hall based on the team and offensive success, the one glaring omission from this group is Bob Hayes.
I know i'm getting off the subject here, but anti-Cowboy bias? Really? "America's Team" that probably has more fans than any other team. Find a way to watch the Panthers vs. Cowboys game from last year and then tell me something about anti-cowboy bias!
I hope you only meant there's bias against the Cowboys in terms of Hall of Fame selection.
Whether Bob Hayes is a HoF level player is certainly debatable.
Arguments pro:
1. he had 3 no-brainer HoF-level seasons as a WR (1965-1967) and three others that were varying levels of very good (1968, 1970-1971).
2. his "first team all pro/pro bowl" numbers are 2/3, not exactly earth-shattering, but not unreasonable either for a WR.
3. he was a very good punt returner, in fact excellent for three of the six years he did so on a consistent basis.
Arguments against:
1. his career is not especially lengthy (11 years, with two of them injury shortened). And nearly half of these eleven years are at average or below level performance. Thus his case is entirely peak-based, not longevity based -- and unfortunately, his peak is short.
2. his short career and weaker years keep his career counting numbers relatively low.
3. he rarely played well in the postseason. He only had two big games (the initial conference games in 1967 and 1968) in 12 appearances, otherwise being pretty much neutralized in the other ten. And during the Ice Bowl game against Green Bay, Hayes kept his hands in his pockets while lining up on running plays and out of his pockets while lining up on passing plays the entire day, which apparently helped tip off the type of play to Green Bay, giving them an advantage and likely contributing to Dallas's loss there.
4. he's not on the '60s all-decade team, while non-HoF receivers like Gary Collins, Del Shofner, and Boyd Dowler are.
Any claims that Hayes was the first to bring speed to the WR position are incorrect (receivers such as Harlon Hill and Ray Renfro were considered speedy WRs to reckon with in the '50s, and '60s star Paul Warfield was a 9.6 sprinter). And the zone defense was not created to stop Hayes. Steve Owen is generally credited with inventing both the umbrella and zone defenses in the early 1950s, created specifically to stop Paul Brown and Cleveland, and it did a good job if you look at the numbers from 1950-52.
One criticism of Hayes is that he didn't compensate well once teams figured out how to stop him, that he didn't have the best hands and wasn't especially imaginative running patterns, two things that would have elevated his game and made him a truly great WR. The result was a drop-off in production.
So what one has with Hayes is an on-the-bubble case that could lean either way, depending on how one sees it. I'm glad he was nominated and won't grouse if he gets in. But he's not an elite-level player either, and I can see why his HoF candidacy failed in 2004.
Bob Hayes was top 10 in yards 6 times -- I don't think there's another non-AFL player from his era (60's-70s) with more than that (Raymond Barry, Charley Taylor, and Bobby Mitchell all equaled that I believe). He was top 5 three times and the only non-AFL guys of that era with more are Barry and Tommy McDonald (if my old numbers are correct -- I'm not double checking this). He averaged 8.6 TDs per 16 games, which is among the top five of the significant WRs of his era. And his career average of 56.2 yards per game is definitely above average for the era -- and more than greats such as Fred Biletnikoff, Lynn Swann, John Stallworth, etc., put up.
In addition to the numbers, he had a tangible impact on the game. Yes, it's sometimes overstated. But in the ultimate team sport he had about as much impact on the way his position is played and how it's defended as any one player in recent memory.
If not for off-the-field issues he would already be in.
A couple of thoughts:
--poster The Flash said Hayes was "truely [sic] a nice person."
Um, how do you know this? Besides, Hayes was jailed 10 months for selling drugs to an undercover policeman. How many nice people does this happen to?
--poster 4Favre said: "You know who belongs in the Hall of Fame and gets screwed every year by the commie-itty?? RUSS FRANCIS!!!!!"
Francis isn't eligible as a Senior Candidate yet, which is how Hayes and Claude Humphrey were nominated for this year. And I don't see why Francis belongs in the HoF before Todd Christensen or Ben Coates, for two.
BlueStarDude, some interesting arguments there. But I'd take care in comparing types of WRs here. Guys like Ray Berry, Charley Taylor, and Fred Biletnikoff were possession receivers, not deep threats, and their raw yardage numbers and yards per catch average will be lower as a result.
You're right that Hayes's average yards per catch and TD numbers are first rate -- in fact, they'd better be, or he hasn't much of a case. His argument is pretty much all based on peak value, not issues tied to career longevity.
the cowboys had never had a winning season in their short 5 yr exsistance before hayes showed up in 1965, including in 1963 and 64 when the cowboys had losing seasons even with a roster of don meredeth, don perkins, bob lilly, george andrie, lee roy jordan, chuck howley, mel renfro and cornell green.
then upon hayes' arrival for the next five seasons with relatively the same team as above, the cowboys would not have another losing season, make the playoffs four times and finish with a record of 49-19-2 over that five yr span.
then in 1970 and 71, the cowboys went to consecutive superbowls(winning it in 1971) with hayes leading the nfl in YPC both seasons; hayes averaging around 900 yards receiving, 25.0 ypc and 10 TD's in 1970 and 71.
also, don meredeth was reborn with hayes' presence on the team. dandy don went from shaky ground before hayes' arrival(including dallas drafing QB craig morton with the sixth overall pick in 1965 though meredeth had been the starter the three previous yrs) to the bert bell award winner as the nfl's mvp in 1966 and going to three straight pro-bowls in 66,67 and 68 beofre his retirement in 1969.
bob hayes not only changed the way defenses were played in the nfl, but he even more importanly almost single-handedly changed the fortunes of the cowboys...from losers to winners.
bob hayes is one of the all-time hof snubs and it's a travesty that he's been held out this long. hopefully the hof gets it right this time!!!!
looking at hayes' career even closer, we find out that he was in the top 10 of a major receiving category(receptions, receiving yards, receiving TD's, total TD's, yards per catch, receiving yards per game, all purpose yards and total yards from scrimmage) 38 times during his career, with 24 of those 38 where hayes finised in the top 5.
now, compare that to the two most recent WR inductees into the pro football hof(michael irvin and art monk). irvin, who played more gms than hayes in his career and played in an era of 16 gm seasons instead of 14 gm seasons like hayes, made the top 10 (30) times with 16 of those in the top 5. while monk played even longer than irvin and he made the top 10 ten times with 7 of those in the top 5.
and remember, both irvin and monk played in much greater passing eras than hayes did.
also, hayes was a very versatile player, proving by the fact he was an excellent return specialist while also being a great WR. in hayes' third season, he was voted to the pro bowl at WR for the third straight yr and led the nfl in total punt return yardage. then the next season he was voted 1st team all nfl at WR for the second time and also led the league in punt return average and punt return TD's that same season.
of the 19 WR's in the HOF, only one has atleast five (10)+ TD receiving seasons(lance alworth).....hayes had that many (10)+TD receiving seasons in his first six seasons. and only hall of famer paul warfield has a higher YPC than hayes for WR's with atleast 300 catches in their career.
hayes scored 45 TD's in his first four yrs in the nfl, only jerry rice and randy moss ever scored more in their first four yrs.
i disagree with MDS, hayes was more than just a "one-dimensional" WR.
not only as i pointed out earlier how he was a great return specialist, but hayes also was one of the greatest 'flanker screen' players of all time. one of dallas' money plays in the 1960's was when he would take the flanker screen, then break the play open for a huge gainer.
hayes also was a YAC(yards after catch) WR, proved by his ability as a return specialist and the short receptions that many times he turned into big gainers. bob hayes had running back type abilities with the ball in his hands, which makes him more than just a 'deep-threat'.
even to this day hayes holds or shares 22 dallas cowboys franchise records, including some like:
*career TD receptions
*career YPC
*YPC avg in a season
*career punt return average
*punt return avg in a season
*longest reception(95 yards)
*most receiving yards in a game(246 yards)
*shares the record for most receiving TD's in a game(4 TD's)
*shares the record with michael irvin as the only cowboy WR's with atleast seven 100 yard receiving games in a season
*first cowboy with 1,000 yards receiving in a season
*most catches by a rookie cowboy WR in a season
*most receiving TD's by a cowboy rookie WR(12 TD's)
*shares the mark of having a TD reception for seven straight games in a season
hayes is recognized as one of the greatest athletes of all time, being a two-sport star in football and track and field; hayes is still the only player in nfl history that has a SB ring and olympic gold medal. he also is one of the few select players ever to be inducted into the dallas cowboys ring of honor.
how bob hayes has not been inducted into the nfl HOF up to now, much less even recently as a senior nominee in 2004 on what is suppose to be a 'rubber stamp' nomination where almost all senior nominees get into the HOF, is still a mystery to me.
Lots of stuff from USGold08. In essence, not really a lot different from the positives I listed for Hayes in my longer post above (essentially a peak value argument), just a whole lot of expounding on it.
Two things to address, though:
1. Cowboys receiving records are all very fine from a local standpoint, but then again so are Saints receiving records -- and I don't see a good case to champion any of the latter for the HoF. How Hayes's numbers stack up to his peers would be more relevant and interesting as a HoF argument.
2. Saying Hayes was responsible for turning around the Cowboys in the mid-'60s single-handedly seems very questionable, though he certainly contributed. One might think two other factors would be very important here:
a. a notably upgraded O-line. There's no doubt that, let's say, the 1967 group of Dave Manders, John Niland, Leon Donahue, Ralph Neely, and Tony Liscio was a vast improvement over, let's say, 1963's Mike Connolly, Dale Memmelaar, Ed Nutting, and an aged Jim Ray Smith and Bob Fry. This may perhaps be the biggest reason Meredith improved at QB later in his career; if you don't have time to throw, it doesn't matter who's doing the catching.
b. a vastly improved defense. Even though the 5-8-1 'Pokes D of 1964 had Jordan, Andrie, Green, and Renfro, they were all very young and took a couple years to mature and coalesce into a really good unit, helped by a late blooming Howley and a pretty much always excellent Lilly, who had started in 1961. Even a fine player like Lilly needs better than the likes of Guy Reese, Mike Dowdle, Warren Livingston, Bob Bercich, Gene Babb, and John Meyers to pull up a bad defense.
"bachslunch".....
i respect your opinions but i still say bob hayes had as much dramatical impact on those mid 60's cowboy teams as any 'one' cowboy player besides bob lilly( a first ballot HOF'er).
besides the obvious QB posiiton(which no team can win without), hayes and lilly were the two cowboys on those 60's teams above, in my opinion, that dallas could least afford to lose. i think you'll find that most people share that same thought.
also, i disagree with you on hayes' team records not meriting much consideration for the HOF. first of all, i wouldn't even begin to try and compare the NO saints to the dallas cowboys in the reference you did; that's like a comparison between the out-house and the penthouse.
the dallas cowboys are one of the most glamorous franchises in all of sports, clearly one of the top flagship franchises in all of american sport. i say that not only for the glamour and fame they have around the country almost like no other, but also the winning tradition that has surronmded them most of their exisitance; including a run of excellence that started in 1966 through 1985, much less what they did in the 1990's.
the cowboys in that 20 year stretch above from 1966 through 1985 had 20 consecutive winning seasons, 18 playoff appearances, 12 division titles, 12 conference championship game appearances, 5 super bowls played in and 2 super bowl titles. i'm not sure any team since 1960 can match that, especially the consistency of winning seasons and playoff appearances in a 20 yr stretch. and obvioulsy, the hayes, lilly and meredeth(etc) cowboys were a big part of that run of dominance, much less the success all started with them in 1966.
for me, those 22 records hayes holds or shares even to this day with the cowboys, is a major accompishment considering the franchise he did it on and that michael irvin is already in the HOF as a cowboy....yet it's hayes that holds or shares most those team marks, not irvin.
this is a response to a few articles i read recently on the internet concerning the bob hayes nomination by the senior's committee for the nfl hof.
it concerns two writers(peter king, ed bouchette) who actually are also voters on the 44 member HOF panel; both also are anti bob hayes and voted against him in 04 and it seems by their recent articles on the matter will do so again this time too.
they have recently slammed the well respected nfl hof seniors committee for their nomination of hayes....with their main complaint that hayes had his chance already in 04 and someone else should have gotten the nomination this time. what they failed to mention in their slander of the seniors panel is there was also two special consultants that were part of the process of electing the two senior nominees.
these two consultants just so happened to be ken houston and art shell, both nfl legends and hof'ers. shell and houston obviously must have had important input into the matter because it was a DE and WR that were selected(claude humphrey and bob hayes); shell was an OT that played against DE's(including humphrey) and houston was a S that covered WR's(including hayes).
so when king and bouchette slay the seniors committeee, that criticism also is being directed at two nfl HOF players.
also, let me say that i agree with the seniors committee on their two choices of hayes and humphrey. hayes is especially favorable because when he was rejected as a senior nominee in 04, there was only a max of 6 players that could be elected, now that number has risen to 7 since then; though it was regretable in 04 that hayes, who had reached the final 6 in the voting process and only needing a simple yes/no vote by the selectors to be elected, wasn't able to garner the 80% needed.
most players who reach the final 6 in the voting process get the 80%, especially the senior nominees; somehow hayes still wasn't able to get enough yes votes despite the incredible odds in his favor.