Julian Edelman announced his retirement from the NFL on Monday, resulting in an immediate Hall of Fame discussion among members of the media and many current and former players.
Donald Driver of Green Bay Packers spoke to Fox News on Wednesday on behalf of Master Lock and shared his input on what it takes to be a Pro Football Hall of Famer – even as he waits for the call.
Driver says he does not know who should get a gold jacket, and that’s the hardest part, because there is ‘no blueprint about where the numbers should be’ to pick up a player in Canton.
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The Texas resident is not sure he knows the criteria – or that anyone else does.
“What is it?” he asks almost rhetorically – “I think no one knows. I think if they had come out and said, ‘You need 1000 catches, you have to reach 15,000 meters, and you have to have 100 touches,’ I will still today play to make sure I wear that gold jacket, ‘he said.
GREEN BAY, WI – SEPTEMBER 30: Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver # 80 smiles from the sidelines during the game against the New Orleans Saints at Lambeau Field on September 30, 2012 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Jeff Gross / Getty Images)
Driver was one of the 130 nominees this year, but did not reach the semifinals and 15 finalists.
Driver considers himself and Edelman to be similar players, especially since they were both the concept of the seventh round. Driver played college football in Alcorn State and Edelman was actually a quarterback at Kent State University.
Driver, who played his entire 14-year career from 1999-2012 at the Packers, was able to surpass from a statistical point of view the greatest wide receivers in franchise history, including Don Hutson, James Lofton and Sterling Sharpe.
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The four-time Pro Bowl receiver holds the franchise’s all-time record for receptions (743) and receptions (10,137). He was also a member of the Packers team that won the Super Bowl XLV over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
On the other hand, Edelman was a three-time Super Bowl champion and Super Bowl LIII MVP with the New England Patriots, and he had 118 receptions and 1,442 yards in the post-season. Both stand second in the Super Bowl era behind legendary Jerry Rice.
“I haven’t gotten to the top yet, and that’s good. But I know what I did,” Driver said. ‘I was not a concept choice from the first round, I think if I had been a first choice concept, and the numbers I did, I think it is not a question now would be if I were in the Hall of Fame.
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“My name was on the mood, I was running. And one day I just hope when I get in, I want to live and I want to be able to enjoy it,” Driver continued. “But if I never get in, I can still tell my kids that I’ve had an amazing career, and that I’ve done some amazing things in the community, and that’s what it’s about. If I never get in. no, I’m never coming in. “
But despite such clear thoughts on the subject, the dream lives on with him.
“I dreamed of it. That day I would wear that golden jacket, stand on that stage and thank my mom and dad, and every coach from the pee-wee league to the NFL.”