John Lynch finally made it into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the Class of 2021, in his ninth year of eligibility and his eighth year as a finalist. Hall of Fame receiver Terrell Owens said he believes Cowboys safety Darren Woodson should be in Canton over Lynch, a safety for the Buccaneers and the Broncos in the same era as Woodson.
“I’m thinking about a guy like Darren Woodson that’s not in the Hall of Fame, but John Lynch is. How in the hell do you quantify that?” Owens asked rhetorically, on Fubo Sports’ Getcha Popcorn Ready.
Hall of Fame receiver Andre Reed, who appeared as a guest with Owens, agreed that Woodson “no doubt” should be in the Hall of Fame.
Woodson and Lynch’s careers overlapped by 11 seasons. Woodson was named All-Pro three times to twice for Lynch, though Lynch’s nine Pro Bowls were four more than Woodson. Neither was all-decade. Woodson won three Super Bowl rings and Lynch one.
“When I got with the Niners, like I said, I didn’t know anything about no rivalry with the Cowboys and the Niners, I knew nothing about that,” Owens told Reed. “But when it comes to the game plan [it was about where is Woodson]? Granted John Lynch did some great things here and there, but I’m not looking for John [on the field]. I wasn’t. But when I played from my rookie year on, and I played against the Cowboys, I had to identify [where Woodson was]. Just because a guy starts on a defense and he is the No. 1 guy back there in the secondary for that defense, for me overall in totality, that doesn’t mean he’s impacting what I’m going to be doing. Yeah, he has to be accounted for that day because you’re game planning, but I wasn’t scared of No. 47 (Lynch]. And when I was with the Eagles and he was with Denver at the time [shrugs].”
Woodson got a step closer to Canton this year, becoming a finalist for the first time.
