Pro Football HOF trims 2026 class to 15 modern-era finalists

• Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Frank Gore and Jason Witten are the first-ballot Hall of Fame candidates.
• Philip Rivers, who returned to play for the Indianapolis Colts in 2025, is no longer eligible.
• The final Class of 2026 inductees will be revealed in January before Super Bowl 60.

One step away.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame revealed its 15 modern-day player finalists for the Class of 2026 on Tuesday, Dec. 30, setting up another round of intrigue on the path to football immortality.

The group includes four first-ballot nominees and four candidates who, as mandated by the Hall’s bylaws, automatically advanced to this stage of the process after reaching the final seven selections for last year’s class.

➤ The first-ballot picks: Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Frank Gore and Jason Witten.

 ➤ The automatic finalists: Willie Anderson, Torry Holt, Luke Kuechly and Adam Vinateri.

➤ Advancing to the final round for the first time: Kevin Williams.

➤ Other returning finalists: Jahri Evans, Eli Manning, Terrell Suggs, Reggie Wayne, Darren Woodson and Marshal Yanda.

The Hall’s 50-member selection will meet before Super Bowl 60 to consider the modern-era players in addition to finalists from the coach (Bill Belichick), contributor (Robert Kraft) and seniors (Ken Anderson, Roger Craig and L.C. Greenwood) categories, to constitute the class that will be enshrined at Canton, Ohio in early August.

The committee can elect up to five modern-day players for induction, provided each receives at least 80% of the final vote. In balloting separate from the modern-era player slate, the committee can elect up to three of the five finalists from the other categories.

The results of the voting, and newest Hall of Fame class, will be revealed during the NFL Honors awards show on Feb. 5 at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco.

There is no set number of inductees, but the bylaws stipulate that the class contains a minimum of four and maximum of eight enshrinees. The Class of 2025 consisted of just four members – Eric Allen, Jared Allen, Antonio Gates and Sterling Sharpe – to mark the smallest class in 20 years.

As usual, the process will be rife with intense debate. While each of the first-ballot nominees carry impeccable credentials, wide receivers Holt and Wayne are finalists for the seventh time. Woodson, meanwhile, is a finalist for the fourth time – in his 18th year of eligibility.