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Projecting future Hall of Famers on each NFL roster

Joe Sargent / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Two criteria were used to assemble this list of players on the path to the Pro Football Hall of Fame:

  1. The player must have at least five seasons of NFL experience.
  2. The player must currently be on an NFL roster.

That excludes marquee names like Odell Beckham Jr., Aaron Donald, Khalil Mack, Adrian Peterson, Antonio Gates, and Darrelle Revis.

So who's left? Here's a team-by-team breakdown of active players who are either certain to wind up in Canton or on the bubble.

Arizona Cardinals

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

Lock Bubble
WR Larry Fitzgerald CB Patrick Peterson

The Hall could've started working on Fitzgerald's bust after he posted 1,411 yards catching passes from Kevin Kolb and a dude named John Skelton in 2011. Peterson's been selected to the Pro Bowl in every one of his seven seasons, but he hasn't been perceived as the league's best corner in any of them.

Atlanta Falcons

Lock Bubble
QB Matt Ryan
WR Julio Jones

Ryan requires a Super Bowl ring or another MVP award to secure a gold jacket. Jones has played at a Hall of Fame level for the last four years, but voters routinely snub receivers, so he's not a lock quite yet.

Baltimore Ravens

Lock Bubble
DE Terrell Suggs K Justin Tucker

Super Bowl? Check. Defensive Player of the Year? Check. Longevity? Check. Consistency? Check. Ball So Hard University's finest product is Canton-bound. Meanwhile, at the rate Tucker's going, he could finish his career as the best kicker in history.

Buffalo Bills

Lock Bubble
RB LeSean McCoy

McCoy's 10,092 career rushing yards are enough for the Hall of Very Good, but not the Hall of Fame. Time is running out for the NFL's 29th-ranked all-time leading rusher to add to his resume, as he turns 30 in July.

Carolina Panthers

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

Lock Bubble
DE Julius Peppers QB Cam Newton
LB Luke Kuechly

Peppers is fourth on the all-time sack list and still going strong. Newton's got an MVP under his belt, but his numbers don't pop. Kuechly has four first-team All-Pro selections and a Defensive Player of the Year award through six seasons, but concussions could shorten his prime.

Chicago Bears

Perhaps Mitchell Trubisky will pop up on this list down the road.

Cincinnati Bengals

Lock Bubble
WR A.J. Green
DT Geno Atkins

Great production + mediocre quarterback play = good chance at the Hall, so if Green gets in, he can thank Andy Dalton. Atkins has flown under the radar for much of his career, but his numbers deserve consideration.

Cleveland Browns

The good news is that they'll all be invited to Joe Thomas' induction.

Dallas Cowboys

Lock Bubble
LT Tyron Smith
C Travis Frederick

The Cowboys arguably have the NFL's best left tackle and center, and they're both under the age of 28.

Denver Broncos

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

Lock Bubble
DE Von Miller

It's odd that Miller has never been named Defensive Player of the Year, since he's been this decade's gold standard for pass-rushers. He's an easy pick.

Detroit Lions

Matt Stafford has thrown for a boatload of yards, but he needs a lot more success before he can be seriously considered for enshrinement.

Green Bay Packers

Lock Bubble
QB Aaron Rodgers LB Clay Matthews

Rodgers is better than the Hall of Fame quarterback who preceded him in Green Bay. Matthews did enough over the first half of his career to put himself in the conversation, but it doesn't feel like he's done enough over the second half to ultimately get the call.

Houston Texans

Lock Bubble
DE J.J. Watt WR DeAndre Hopkins

Only two players in NFL history have been named Defensive Player of the Year three times, and Watt is one of them. Hopkins could join Watt in Canton someday if his career continues along its current trajectory.

Indianapolis Colts

Lock Bubble
K Adam Vinatieri

There's not much more Vinatieri can do to make himself a lock; it just comes down to whether voters will support a place-kicker.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Lock Bubble
DE Calais Campbell

Campbell could have an outside shot if he finishes his career strong. He's been one of the most versatile and productive defensive linemen over the last 10 years.

Kansas City Chiefs

Lock Bubble
S Eric Berry

Berry's been brilliant when healthy, but a pair of major injuries and a cancer diagnosis have limited him to five full seasons.

Los Angeles Chargers

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

Lock Bubble
QB Philip Rivers

Rivers doesn't have a Super Bowl ring or an MVP trophy, but his productivity and dependability - he hasn't missed a game since becoming the Chargers' starter in 2006 - could be enough for a gold jacket.

Los Angeles Rams

Lock Bubble
DT Ndamukong Suh
CB Aqib Talib

Suh's ability to command double teams has made the players around him better, but his individual stats are comparable to other defensive tackles on the bubble. Though Talib enjoyed a marvelous run in Denver, the earlier part of his career wasn't so glamorous.

Miami Dolphins

Lock Bubble
RB Frank Gore DE Cameron Wake

A model of consistency, Gore ranks fifth on the NFL's all-time rushing list. Wake has more sacks than you think (92 in nine NFL seasons), and if you add the 39 sacks he registered over two seasons in the CFL, he has a real case for the Pro Football (let's repeat that: Pro Football) Hall of Fame.

Minnesota Vikings

Check back in a couple years; the Vikings have several rising stars.

New England Patriots

Lock Bubble
QB Tom Brady
TE Rob Gronkowski

In the history of football, it's hard to find a quarterback better than Brady or a tight end more dominant than Gronkowski.

New Orleans Saints

Lock Bubble
QB Drew Brees

The prolific Brees has been a lock for Canton since Feb. 7, 2010 - the day he captured Super Bowl XLIV.

New York Giants

Lock Bubble
QB Eli Manning

Two Super Bowl MVPs will make up for Manning's average career stats. He may be the most underwhelming quarterback in the Hall of Fame when he gets inducted, but he'll be in there nonetheless.

New York Jets

You can spell H-O-F without any J-E-T-S.

Oakland Raiders

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

Lock Bubble
RB Marshawn Lynch

Lynch may not reach every statistical benchmark for a typical Hall of Fame running back before he retires, but Beast Mode transcended the game and is unquestionably one of the greatest power backs ever.

Philadelphia Eagles

Lock Bubble
LT Jason Peters
DE Michael Bennett
DT Fletcher Cox

Peters, Bennett, and Cox have all enjoyed spurts of greatness, but none of them have dominated for a prolonged stretch. Peters, a nine-time Pro Bowler, is the likeliest of the three to get in.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Lock Bubble
QB Ben Roethlisberger RB Le'Veon Bell
WR Antonio Brown

Roethlisberger's won two championships and he adapted his game beautifully as the NFL evolved. Brown's numbers (and highlight reels) are just silly. Bell's rushing style is unlike anything the league has seen before, but the question is whether he can sustain high-end production for long enough.

San Francisco 49ers

Lock Bubble
CB Richard Sherman

For four years, Sherman and Revis went back and forth for the title of best corner in football. Sherman used to go full games without being thrown at - that's dominance.

Seattle Seahawks

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

Lock Bubble
S Earl Thomas S Kam Chancellor
QB Russell Wilson
LB Bobby Wagner

Though Thomas isn't Ed Reed, he's not far off. Chancellor was the enforcer in the Legion of Boom, but he may not have the numbers. If Wilson and Wagner keep doing their things for another handful of seasons, they'll become locks.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Lock Bubble
DT Gerald McCoy

McCoy's greatness has often been ignored due to the irrelevance of the team he's played on, but the 30-year-old's career numbers are similar to Suh's and he's made just as many Pro Bowls.

Tennessee Titans

The Titans' best players are either too old or too young to receive Hall of Fame consideration at this point.

Washington Redskins

Lock Bubble
LT Trent Williams

Six straight Pro Bowl selections speak to Williams' consistency, but with zero first-team All-Pro appearances, it's tough to say he's an all-time great.

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