Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald Among 52 Players to Advance in Pro Football HOF Voting

Drew Brees and Larry Fitzgerald are one step closer to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Brees and Fitzgerald, who are each in their first year of eligibility, were among 52 players who moved forward to the next round of voting for the Class of 2026 as announced Wednesday by the Hall of Fame.

The Hall of Fame initially named 128 players as candidates. According to the organization, the next round of cuts reducing the list to around 25 players is set to be announced "in about five weeks."

That list will include Willie Anderson, Torry Holt, Luke Kuechly and Adam Vinatieri, who will automatically advance to the final 15 candidates after finishing as finalists for the Class of 2025.

Brees was nominated in his first year of eligibility after retiring following the 2020 season.

The best years of Brees' career took place after he signed with the New Orleans Saints ahead of the 2006 season. He finished the 2009 season as Super Bowl MVP after leading the Saints to a 31-17 Super Bowl XLIV win over Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts.

Brees retired after 20 seasons with 80,358 passing yards and 571 passing touchdowns, both of which rank second only to Tom Brady for the most in NFL history.

He also ranked first in NFL history with 7,142 completions and third with a completion percentage of 67.7.

Fitzgerald also retired after the 2020 season following 17 seasons with the Arizona Cardinals.

He played a key role in the Cardinals making an appearance in Super Bowl LXIII after the 2008 season, then racked up 127 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in Arizona's championship loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

By the time he stepped away from the game, Fitzgerald ranked second only to Jerry Rice for the all-time NFL lead with 1,432 career receptions and 17,492 receiving yards. He also ranked sixth with 121 career receiving touchdowns.

Other first-year Hall of Fame candidates still in the running to join the Class of 2026 are Philip Rivers, Jason Witten, Frank Gore, LeSean McCoy, Greg Olsen and Maurkice Pouncey.

Eli Manning, who became Hall of Fame eligible in 2025 but did not make the cut, meanwhile remains in the running for induction in 2026.