Culture Stew is a bit of an experiment in having the average girl or guy share thoughts on the things that make life worth living in many regards: television, sports, movies and music. Come and take a look at http://www.culturestew.com. Don't get me wrong, I think Doug Flutie is one of the great sports stories of our time. His 21-year career included three professional football leagues and some spectacular moments. It's all just not good enough.
If I were placed on the Hall of Fame panel for any sport, my requirements would be stringent. I want to see the best players from the best leagues and nothing else. I want to see someone that dominated his position, that altered the game plan of his/her opponent. Doug Flutie is simply not that guy.
His accomplishments in the CFL do indeed, count and I think that any kind of bias on the Hall of Fame committee to only consider NFL stats should be explicitly prohibited by the language that accompanies ballots that are sent out. It is the Pro Football Hall of Fame, not the NFL Hall of Fame. I'm on board with that.
What I'm not on board with is that the stats should be seen as equal. Canada's game is an entirely different game, and while there a number of quality players in the CFL of the past and present, it is the NFL where the best competition exists. That's not a shot against the CFL, it's simply the reality that exists.
That said, Flutie's CFL statistics are impressive. His six Most Outstanding Player awards comprise a CFL record, to go along with his three Grey Cup victories, taking MVP honors each year. His 48 touchdown passes in 1994 are still a CFL record to this day. His completion totals make up four of the five best seasons in CFL history. Oh, and he threw for 41,355 yard and 270 touchdowns.
With all of that, it would have taken only a decent NFL career to really round out a Hall of Fame resume, but that just didn't happen. His most famous NFL moments were ones of quarterback controversy where Flutie was always the bridesmaid, very rarely the bride. His yanking by the Bills in favor of Rob Johnson and his quick replacement by Drew Brees in San Diego solidify his primarily backup status. With anything but that backup status dogging his NFL performance record, the case would have been much easier to make.
College football Hall of Fame? Yes. The Pro Football Hall of Fame? Well, how many football players can say they have their own cereal?
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