SAN FRANCISCO — Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly stepped into an exclusive club Thursday night, as one of five members named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026.
Kuechly was joined in this year's class by Saints quarterback Drew Brees, Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald Jr., Patriots and Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri, and former 49ers running back Roger Craig, the seniors nominee for this year's class.
They enter an exclusive club that's now 387 members deep.
Those five made it through a grueling process and months of voting to reach this point.
After surviving votes from an initial nominee list of 128 players, through reduction votes that took the group to 50, then 25 semifinalists, to a final 15.
Kuechly was one of four automatic finalists, as one of the players who made the final seven for the Class of 2025 but were not chosen. The others in that group were wide receiver Torry Holt, tackle Willie Anderson, and Vinatieri.
The other 11 finalists this year were Brees, Jahri Evans, Fitzgerald, Frank Gore, Eli Manning, Terrell Suggs, Reggie Wayne, Kevin Williams, Jason Witten, Darren Woodson, and Marshal Yanda.
In the initial reduction to 10, Holt, Wayne, Evans, Williams, and Manning were eliminated.
Selectors then chose a final seven, which included the four modern players selected, plus Anderson, Yanda, and Suggs.
That left Gore, Woodson, and Witten in the group from eight to 10.
With those results, Anderson, Yanda, and Suggs will be automatic finalists for the Class of 2027.
In the combined seniors, coach, and contributor category, Craig emerged from a group that also included Ken Anderson, L.C. Greenwood, Bill Belichick, and Robert Kraft.
Last year, only one senior (Sterling Sharpe) emerged from that group as well. Voters choose three of the five candidates from the group, meaning at least one senior will get a vote on every ballot.
By getting four modern players in this year, voters cleared space for a crowded field of incoming players who deserve serious consideration.
Eligible for the first time in 2027 are former Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, Adrian Peterson, Rob Gronkowski, Richard Sherman, and Ben Roethlisberger, among others, including Andrew Whitworth, Alex Mack, and Eric Weddle.
Combined with the returning finalists, along with players such as Steve Smith, who was a finalist in 2025 but didn't make the final 15 this year, the process will continue to be competitive.
Which it's supposed to be.
A look at Luke Kuechly's career with the Carolina Panthers in photos
