Below are the 15 modern-era finalists for the class of 2018:

Lewis, Moss, Urlacher, and Hutchinson are first-time finalists, and three of them are no-brainers.

You won’t be on an island if you suggest that Lewis is the best inside linebacker in NFL history. Lewis scores well in pretty much every metric possible. When it comes to Approximate Value, what Ray Lewis did was unbelievable. He made 13 Pro Bowls, which is also absurd. The Ravens went on a magical run to win the Super Bowl in his final year, and at the time he retired, he was arguably the best player to retire after winning the Super Bowl.

Moss? He’s another no-brainer.  I haven’t produced a career ranking of wide receivers in awhile, but when you look at Moss’s production in terms of gray ink, he’s a pretty obvious choice. Only five modern-era wide receivers have been selected enshrinement on their first ballot: Jerry Rice, Paul Warfield, Steve Largent, Raymond Berry, and Lance Alworth. There’s a good chance Moss joins that list, and he’s a top-5 choice for greatest wide receiver of all time on just about every list.

For a 7-year stretch, Hutchinson was a first-team All-Pro 6 times, including 5 by the Associated Press. In 2007 and 2008, Adrian Peterson led the NFL in rushing yards per game, and in 2005, Shaun Alexander was the AP MVP. Both players had success running behind Hutchinson, who was an obvious choice for the 2000s All-Deade team. And while the All-Decade team has two starters, I suspect the majority would view Hutchinson as the best guard of the 2000s. He’s an obvious first ballot Hall of Fame candidate.

Urlacher, of course, has a very strong Hall of Fame case as well, although his candidacy may be overshadowed by the overwhelming presence of Lewis. After Lewis and perhaps Junior Seau (who spent about half of his career as an outside linebacker), Urlacher is probably the best middle linebacker of the last three decades (aka the post-
Mike Singletary era, although fans who place less emphasis on longevity may prefer Luke Kuechly or Patrick Willis.  Given the presence of Lewis and that Zach Thomas has a similar resume on paper, I’m not sure that Urlacher has distinguished himself enough to become a first ballot Hall of Famer.  But he will no doubt wind up in Canton soon.

Of last year’s 15 finalists, 5 made the Hall of Fame, and 9 of the 10 are once against finalists, with Don Coryell being the sole exception.  You can read my thoughts on those 9 here.  In addition to the four newly-eligible candidates, Edgerrin James and Everson Walls are the new finalists in 2017.  Walls has never been a finalist before, and may be finally being considered because it is his last year of eligibility as a modern-era candidate.  James was a semi-finalist last year, but missed the cut to the final 15.

In addition to Lewis, Moss, and Hutchinson, I would double up on the receivers and guards, and bring in Owens and Faneca. That would provide arguably the best players at their positions in the decade of the 2000s, which makes for a pretty strong Hall of Fame Class.

Which five would you vote for this year?

Which five do you think will be inducted this year?

Finally, Robert Brazile and Jerry Kramer are the two Senior candidates.  We can discuss those guys in the comments, too.