The Carolina Panthers had the honor of bestowing one of the greatest defenders in NFL history, linebacker Luke Kuechly.
From 2012-2019, the Panthers' all-time great averaged 157 tackles per season, won NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year the following season, and was named an All-Pro in seven of his eight years in the league before his sudden retirement in 2020.
Many assumed Kuechly would be a sure-fire first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee when his time came in 2025. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.
There was widespread outrage in the Panthers community and across the league when the decision was announced, including from All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey, one of Kuechly's best teammates and close friends from his time in Carolina.
Christian McCaffrey is brutally honest about what many already knew about Luke Kuechly's snub
In a recent interview, McCaffrey expressed his feelings toward the snub and his emotions regarding what could happen when the inductees are announced on Thursday.
McCaffrey admitted he would be quite emotional if he heard Kuechly's name announced for enshrinement, and he won't be alone.
"I would definitely cry. I mean, he's a first ballot Hall of Famer, and I think he got screwed (last year)."
It's a response many fans across the country have felt for the last year. Kuechly's potential omission from the Hall of Fame wouldn't even be the most startling, as Bill Belichick won't be inducted. That is even more outrageous given the accolades.
McCaffrey is up for several awards at NFL Honors: Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, and Most Valuable Player. However, Kuechly's induction into the Hall of Fame would mean more than any award he receives this week.
"You know, he's one of the best players that's ever played football, and the fact that I got the few years that I did with him was—I think the older I get in the league, the more I appreciate it, that I got to be in a locker room with guys like that and watch them every day. And not just play with them—obviously the play speaks for itself—but the kind of person [Luke] is and still maintains a friendship to this day is really an honor."Christian McCaffrey via Panthers.com
It remains disappointing that Kuechly was ignored on the first ballot, and the same goes for Belichick. Their omissions further highlight the flaws in the voting process for the NFL's highest honor, which has deservedly been under intense scrutiny for two consecutive years.
How many more legends of the game — those who made a truly lasting impact — will be shut out before corrections are made?
It feels as though the NFL is trending toward the way baseball votes players into its Hall of Fame. A candidate needing at least 75 percent of the vote to get into the Baseball Hall of Fame and a football player or coach needing 40 of 50 votes to get in sound eerily similar. Both reflect an inadequate process.
Kuechly deserves to be in the Hall of Fame, and he should've gotten in on the first try. If he doesn't get in on his second try, the outrage may match or exceed that directed at the voters for their Belichick blunder.
While his legacy won't be tarnished, it remains a tragedy of sorts that Kuechly won't hold that first-ballot honor.
But Kuechly might not have to wait much longer to secure his place in football immortality.