Sterling Sharpe was finally elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and will receive his Gold Jacket next summer, but one analyst believes that the Packers wide receiver’s impact on Green Bay goes far beyond his own career success.
Sharpe was voted into the Hall of Fame 30 years after his retirement, despite catching 595 passes for 8,134 yards and 65 touchdowns, despite his career being cut short by neck injuries.
The vast majority of those receptions came from Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre, who was inducted as a first-ballot Hall of Famer five years after he retired.
How Sterling Sharpe Helped Boost Brett Favre’s Hall of Fame Stature
Longtime SiriusXM NFL Radio analyst Pat Kirwin believes that without Sharpe, Favre may have had to wait, himself, as well.
“I followed his career since he was at South Carolina,” Kirwin said. “And, because I was such close friends with his brother [Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe], I got a chance to really understand a lot about him.
“He was a phenomenal receiver, and honestly, Brett Favre, I don’t know if you were going to get in right away without Sterling Sharpe.”
Favre’s candidacy, of course, was boosted by the Green Bay’s Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots and return trip to the Super Bowl, in a loss to the Denver Broncos, the following season in addition to his 71,838 passing yards, 508 touchdowns, and three MVP awards, among other accomplishments.
But, Sharpe in a lot of ways was a forerunner of how teams use modern wide receivers, and he was a integral piece of Favre’s success in Green Bay.
Kirwin is now among the Hall of Fame selectors and gave an impassioned defense of Sharpe’s induction.
“Back in the day,” Kirwin says of Sharpe and Favre’s connection. “The guy you looked for every time you dropped back to throw the ball was Mr. Sharpe. And, it’s time he gets in.
“You know, Shannon, at his presentation for his Hall of Fame, he cried. He cried that his brother wasn’t in, and he knew his brother was a better player than him.”
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