The Next HoF Class

The only official names for the Class of 2027 so far are the coaches and contributors still in the running. It is the first class decided under the Hall's overhauled selection process: a committee half the size, no separate senior category, and one 15-name slate instead of four ballots. The Hall names its semifinalists in late November, cuts to a 15-name slate in early January, and reveals the class itself at NFL Honors during Super Bowl week. Until then, all there is to go on is my model, which scores every eligible player the same way it scores every Hall of Famer since 2005. The full ranked list lives on the Class of 2027 page and moves as scores move. This page covers the returning candidates with a real case, the new names arriving with them, and the coaches and contributors competing for the two seats that aren't for players.

Under the old bylaws, three names would already have been locked into the 2027 slate. Willie Anderson, Terrell Suggs and Marshal Yanda all reached the final seven last cycle without clearing 80 percent, which used to make them automatic finalists the next year. The overhaul eliminated that rule. All three now have to re-qualify through the screening subcommittees, exactly like a first-year candidate. Nothing is reserved for them.

That's good news for the seven first-year names arriving at once: Ben Roethlisberger, Adrian Peterson, Rob Gronkowski, Richard Sherman, Antonio Brown, Cam Newton and Andrew Whitworth. None of the slate is spoken for before they show up. There are only 13 player spots now, but all 13 are open.

The coach and contributor seats

One coach and one contributor join the 13 players on the slate, and each comes through its own subcommittee. Both have now cut their lists to five. On November 4 the contributor subcommittee advanced Ralph Hay, Robert Kraft, Virginia McCaskey, Doug Williams and John Wooten from 42 nominees. On November 5 the coach subcommittee advanced Bill Belichick, Tom Coughlin, Mike Holmgren, Dan Reeves and Mike Shanahan from 14.

Both subcommittees meet again on November 17 and each picks one name for the slate. Belichick and Kraft were last year's coach and contributor candidates, and neither was elected. Whoever is picked this time faces the same cuts and the same ballot as the players. The model doesn't score contributors, and it doesn't turn a coach's record into a chance of election. The forecast lists each coach's head-coaching record and Coach Score.

See how HoFW ranks every one of them on the Class of 2027 page

I update this page each year instead of starting a new one. For the model behind those rankings, see How My Pro Football Hall of Fame Rating (HoFW) Works. To see every player's score rather than one class, visit the Hall of Fame player database, or build your own ballot in the Hall of Fame Studio.