Maurkice Pouncey's Hall of Fame Case: Steelers Center Has Canton-Worthy Resume

After the next batch of Steelers are enshrined, Pittsburgh will officially have 29 members in Canton, with more expected to follow in the coming years.

The Steelers have a handful of candidates still waiting to get in, with popular names such as Hines Ward and Andy Russell still awaiting their faithful day. While those names and others remain a possibility, many believe the next to see his name in a bust of bronze has yet to retire.

Ben Roethlisberger will command most of the chatter when he decides to hang it up, and rightfully so. Roethlisberger is nothing short of a first-ballot Hall of Fame candidate, and will certainly see his special day sooner rather than later.

However, while his retirement is still undecided, it's clear than when he indeed becomes eligible, Maurkice Pouncey has the merits to get in as well. Pouncey, widely considered one of the best at his position for the majority of his career, could potentially become the third Steelers center to be inducted, following behind the footsteps of Mike Webster and Dermontti Dawson.

With offensive linemen, there are no true statistics to justify their impact on the game, simply accolades.

To date, Pouncey has missed the Pro Bowl just twice in his career (both seasons ended early due to injury), earning nine total nods since being drafted in the 2010 NFL Draft. With five total All-Pro honors (three first-team, two second-team) and a spot on the NFL's 2010's All-Decade team (selected by the Hall of Fame's committee), Pouncey's resume stacks up quite well with previous inductees.

Sporting News released a piece prior to the start of the 2019 season, ranking players in the NFL and their chances of one day making the Hall of Fame. Pouncey appears to be in good shape, as he was allotted a 90% chance to be inducted:

"He has been a Pro Bowler for six of his seven seasons in Pittsburgh," said Sporting News. "He will join the late Mike Webster and Dermontti Dawson as Steelers centers in the Hall."

Alan Saunders of SteelersNow also wrote a great piece on Pouncey's case for entering the Hall of Fame prior to the start of the 2020 season.

Saunders pointed out that Alan Faneca and Olin Kreutz were the only member of the previously named 2000's All-Decade team to not be inducted into the Hall of Fame (Kreutz is now alone in that category), while also noting that Pouncey's Pro Bowl/All-Pro/All-Decade team nod stacks up with the previous centers who have recently been inducted into the Hall of Fame.

While Pouncey certainly has the resume, it also may be dependent on who is up for election when he's finally eligible. The only requirement for players to get in Canton is having been retired for at least five years, putting Pouncey's first years of eligibility following the 2025 or 2026 season, depending on when Pouncey decides to hang up the cleats.

Predicting potential HOF classes is a tad tricky, seeing as though players tend to fall through the cracks if they're not widely considered a first-ballot Hall of Fame player. However, eligible players ahead of Pouncey's potential first class are considerably talented (per SI's Clark Judge):

2023: LB Navorro Bowman, S Kam Chancellor, CB Antonio Cromartie, DE/LB Elvis Dumervil, G Jahri Evans, DE Dwight Freeney, LB James Harrison, CB/KR Devin Hester, P Shane Lechler, RB DeMarco Murray, QB Carson Palmer, CB Darrelle Revis and OT Joe Thomas

2024: TE Antonio Gates, RB Jamaal Charles, DE Chris Long, QB Andrew Luck, PK Sebastian Janikowski, WR Jordy Nelson, DT Haloti Ngata, DE Julius Peppers, RB Jonathan Stewart, C Max Unger and DT Kyle Williams

2025: LB Lorenzo Alexander, TE Vernon Davis, LB Luke Kuechly, QB Eli Manning and S Eric Weddle

Unfortunately, not every player can be inducted on their first go-around, leaving the potential for a handful of solid resume's to fall in competition with Pouncey.

Then, you must factor in the current group of players Pouncey is set to retire with, with potential arguments having to be made against the likes of Philip Rivers, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, Larry Fitzgerald, Frank Gore, Jason Witten and Adrian Peterson among others set to retire relatively soon.

Case in point: Pouncey may have to wait a minute before he's able to slip on a gold jacket, similar to how another former great offensive linemen in Alan Faneca once waited before hearing his name called.

For now, Pouncey will continue to weigh the pros and cons of retirement before officially making a decision.

However it may come, in whatever form or fashion, I believe Pouncey will eventually reach the ultimate goal every football player aspires to reach. His playing career as a whole was quite remarkable, and his accolades consistently match with fellow Hall of Fame offensive linemen.