Philadelphia Eagles: Dick Vermeil rightfully named as Hall of Fame finalist
At the risk of sounding unappreciative of bratty, it’s about doggone time. Former Philadelphia Eagles head coach Dick Vermeil, along with Cliff Branch, has been named as one of the first two finalists for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a member of its 2022 class.
Now, we just need someone to vote Eric Allen on that same list. Oh, come on. No one else is wondering why neither of these guys don’t already have busts in Canton?
This is an honor for a Philadelphia Eagles legend that’s truly long overdue.
Long before Greg Kinnear was cast to play Dick Vermeil in Walt Disney’s 2006 biopic Invincible, a story about another Philadelphia Eagles legend, Vince Papale, Vermeil’s head-coaching tenure stretched across two and a half decades and landed him in the locker rooms of three different NFL franchises. All of which still love the young man to this day.
From 1976 to 1982, he took a troubled and downtrodden Eagles franchise, turned them into winners, and led them to a Super Bowl before walking away due to what he described as ‘burnout’. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the Philly media and faithful have been driving coaches crazy for years.
Once that stage of his career was over, Vermeil spent time with what was then the Saint Louis Rams from 1997 to 1999, where he mentored a few Pro Football Hall of fame inductees (Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk, and Isaac Bruce). He won a Super Bowl for his trouble before his last stop as a head coach, a 44-36 run with the Kansas City Chiefs, put the stamp on what we already knew.
This guy can coach.
During his own Hall of Fame induction speech, Philly’s most recent Hall of Fame inductee, Harold Carmichael, expressed his gratitude to his former teacher stating that he hoped Coach joins him among football’s immortals as a part of canton’s next class. Well, we’re one step closer to seeing that happen.
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Cliff Branch has been named as a senior finalist. Coach Vermeil has been chosen as a coaches finalist. The next step includes a vote that will take place on the day before the next Super Bowl. Everyone who has ever cheered for this team is firmly behind Coach Vermeil as this would only make things official. If we base things off of resume alone, this guy should have been given his gold jacket many moons ago.