Football Hall of Fame: Hall-less Teams' Best Chances For Enshrinement

Of the 32 NFL teams, five have yet to primarily induct a player into the Hall of Fame - Atlanta, Baltimore, Carolina, Houston, and Jacksonville.

While each team has had its share of great players, none have earned legendary status yet.

So who are these teams' best candidates for Hall of Fame enshrinement. Let's find out.

What Makes A Hall of Famer?

One of the goals of the Pro Football Hall of Fame is to "honor individuals who have made outstanding contributions to professional football."

"Outstanding contributions" pretty much translates to the players that put up historic numbers, while leading their teams to success. 

But leading the league in rushing for one season before burning out won't cut it - only those that sustain a high level of play for a majority of their careers will get inducted.

This year's headliners, Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith, are not only Hall of Famers - they're legends of the game. They not only put up good numbers, but redefined their respective positions. If you ask young running backs and wide receivers who influenced their game the most, Smith and Rice's name will certainly come up.

Atlanta Falcons: LB Tommy Nobis

This was a tough choices, for many reasons. The Falcons have had many great players in franchise history, but not many Hall of Fame players.

Former linebacker Tommy Nobis is the exception.

As Atlanta's first-ever draft pick, he led the team in tackles for nine of his first 11 seasons. Though tackles were not a recorded stat at the time, it is believed that he racked up 294 in his rookie season!

He was a five-time Pro Bowl selection and was part of the All-Decade team in the 1960s.

He has received high praise from Hall of Famers such as Tom Landry and Mike Ditka. Hall of Fame running back Larry Csonka said that he would "rather play against [Dick] Butkus than Nobis

Hopefully he can get in as a Senior Candidate somewhere down the line.

Other Candidates

The wild card here is Deion Sanders. Though he grabbed more interceptions and scored more special teams TDs as a Falcon, he had most of his success as a Cowboy. I think that he will go in as a Cowboy, not a Falcon.

It'll take a lot for Michael Turner or Matt Ryan to get HOF consideration. Roddy White has is coming off of his third straight 1,000-yard season. He seems more likely out of the three to get in at the moment, but it's honestly too early to tell.

Baltimore Ravens: LB Ray Lewis

Though they are currently without a primary Hall of Famer, Baltimore should enshrine three in the next 5-10 years.

All have put together great careers, but Ray Lewis is a lock for first-ballot enshrinement.

The two-time Defensive Player of the Year and 11-time Pro Bowler has been the anchor of one of the most feared defenses of the last decade. His 11 tackles and four pass deflections in Super Bowl XXXV earned him MVP honoers.

With 36.5 career sacks and 28 interceptions, Lewis is also one of the most complete linebackers in NFL history. Though 35 years old, there's still no question as to who the leader of the Ravens' defense is.

Other Candidates

Ed Reed and Jonathan Ogden both join Ray Lewis on the 2000s All-Decade Team, and for good reason. 

Reed is one of the best "ball hawking" safeties of all-time. But with only eight seasons under his belt and talks of retirement already looming, just another season or two could hurt his HOF credentials.

Jonathan Ogden was a perennial starter at tackle since being drafted 4th overall in 1996. He may not be a first-ballot selection (Strahan, Sapp, and Allen are also eligible in '12), but he'll be in soon enough.

Carolina Panthers: WR Steve Smith

With Julius Peppers' departure from Carolina, Steve Smith is now Carolina's best chance for Hall of Fame enshrinement. 

He has put up great numbers since becoming the team's go-to receiver in 2003. His "Triple Crown" performance in 2005 is, in my mind, one of the best single-season performances of the past decade by a receiver.

Smith's only dilenma is that time is running against him. He's 31 and entering his 10th season, but only has 50 TD catches. 

He would need to put together two or three more elite seasons to really enter the HOF discussions, and I don't think that he's capable of doing so.

Other Candidates

DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart are off to great starts in their young careers. If they could get 2,000 combined rushing yards for six or seven more seasons and possibly lead Carolina to postseason success, it's not out of the realm of possibility that both could get in as Panthers.

However, the Hall of Fame is more likely if they're on separate teams.

Houston Texans: WR Andre Johnson

Being such a young franchise, the Texans have no surefire Hall of Famers. But if they continue their stellar play, a few of their players should be in the discussion down the line.

Andre Johnson is leading this group. From the time he came into the league, it was evident that he was a special wideout. 

He's shown no signs of slowing his elite pace - his consecutive 1,500-yard seasons have earned him First-Team All-Pro honors the past two seasons. 

What Johnson and the Texans must do now is make the playoffs; lack of postseason success is a great way to nullify Hall of Fame numbers, and I'm sure that he realizes this.

If the Texans can make some noise in January, while Johnson continues his dominant play, he could be Canton-bound.

Other Candidates

The Texans have their share of defensive standouts. Mario Williams, Brian Cushing, and DeMeco Ryans are all great young players ready to take their game to the next level. 

But like Andre Johnson, they'll need to make the playoffs before receiving any HOF consideration later in their careers. They certainly have a chance to do so this season.

Jacksonville Jaguars: WR Jimmy Smith

The Jaguars are in the same boat as the Panthers and Texans - they're still a young franchise to have Hall of Famers. But of the three teams, they have the more notable candidates. 

While Fred Taylor put together a great career, I give the edge to Jimmy Smith. He also had five Pro Bowl selections to Fred Taylor's one. He also went out on top, which should help in a close vote.

I normally don't base decisions on something as frivolous as Pro Bowl selections, but that's how close they both are in my mind.

What will hurt both of them is that they never had a ton of postseason success. Yes, they made conference championship games but neither were really close.

They're among the all-time leaders in rushing and receiving yards, but neither has ever been named First-Team All-Pro. 

As talented as they were, it's unfortunate that their greatness isn't appreciated outside of Jacksonville.

Other Candidates

Maurice Jones-Drew is the only other possibility at the moment. Not only has he been a fantasy monster, he's putting up great numbers with a not-so-great supporting cast.