The Jets aren’t the most iconic NFL franchise, but there have been plenty of players who’ve donned the green and white that deserve the esteemed accolade of Hall of Famer.
Former center Kevin Mawae will be inducted this weekend alongside seven others, joining the six Jets already enshrined in Canton. Mawae certainly won’t be the last Jet to enter the Hall. There are several other Jet greats who are still waiting for their moment of glory.
Here are four Jets who deserve to (one day) be in the Hall of Fame.
Darrelle Revis
Revis won’t be eligible for the Hall of Fame until 2023, but when that time comes, the shutdown cornerback should be a first-ballot inductee.
Revis made seven Pro Bowls over his 11-year career and earned four All-Pro selections as well. Many considered Revis to be the best cornerback of his era because of his ability to lock down an opponent’s top receiving option. In 2009 alone, Revis held wide receivers like Randy Moss, Andre Johnson and Chad Ochocinco to under 35 yards in matchups and only allowed three touchdowns to the receivers he covered.
Though Revis’ second stint with the Jets ended poorly, he will be remembered fondly for what he did in his prime.
Nick Mangold
If Kevin Mawae is the best Jets center of all-time, Mangold is a very close second.
A first-round pick out of Ohio State in 2006, Mangold started from day one for the Jets and became one of the best centers in the NFL during his career. He made seven Pro Bowls and two All-Pro teams in 11 years with New York, only missing four games before his injury-plagued final season with the Jets.
It’s hard for centers to make the Hall of Fame – just ask Mawae, who waited five years after he became eligible. Mangold might have to wait longer, but he was one of the best at his position during his career and should find his way to Canton at some point in his post-career life.
Joe Klecko
Klecko terrorized offenses in the 1980s as a member of the “New York Sack Exchange,” but because sacks weren’t officially recorded as stats until 1982 (midway through his career), we may never know how truly dominant Klecko was in his heyday.
While he only “technically” finished his career with 24 sacks, many say he had over 74 during his 11 years in New York. Not only that, Klecko was the first defensive player in NFL history to make the Pro Bowl at three different positions: defensive end (1981), defensive tackle (1983-84) and nose tackle (1985).
People have been saying Joe Klecko should to be in the Hall of Fame for years, and former Patriots guard and Hall-of-Famer John Hannah once said that “not having Joe in the Hall of Fame is really kind of a slur against the Hall of Fame.”
Mark Gastineau
Gastineau was arguably the greatest pass rusher of his era. He led the league in sacks back-to-back years in 1983 and 1984, and his 22 sacks in ‘84 was an NFL record until 2002.
Like Klecko, Gastineau helped turn the “New York Sack Exchange” into a fearful foursome, but his career sack totals are a little misleading without three years of stats. Even still, Gastineau has 74 sacks to his name over his 10-year career with the Jets and his five Pro Bowl and three All-Pro awards should make his case for the Hall of Fame an easy one in future ballots.
