By JOSH DUBOW AP Pro Football Writer
NEW ORLEANS — Former Chargers tight end Antonio Gates was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the smallest induction class in 20 years following offseason rule changes meant to make it harder to get inducted.
Gates, elected in his second year of eligibility, will be joined by defensive end Jared Allen, cornerback Eric Allen and wide receiver Sterling Sharpe.
Gates spent his entire 16-year career with the Chargers, becoming one of the best at his position with 116 touchdown catches. Gates played only basketball in college at Kent State, but the undrafted free agent and former power forward became the Chargers’ franchise leader in receptions, yards receiving, and touchdown catches and was selected to eight Pro Bowls.
“The opportunity I got speaks volumes of how (the Chargers) believed in me,” Gates said. “I’m happy it all paid off.”
Gates, who has served as the Chargers’ legends ambassador since retiring in 2018, was introduced in New Orleans’ Saenger Theatre by his former Chargers teammate and fellow Hall of Famer, LaDainian Tomlinson.
“It’s really so hard to describe in words,” Gates told reporters after the announcement. “I’m so happy. It’s like a world of weight off my shoulders. I finally made it. I finally reached the pinnacle of sports.”
He became an All-Pro in just his second season in 2004. He was an All-Pro again the next two seasons and went on to have a 16-year career with the Chargers. Gates finished with 955 catches for 11,841 yards and an NFL record for tight ends with his 116 touchdown catches. He ranks seventh all-time in touchdown receptions.
Gates transferred to Kent State after Nick Saban, then the football coach at Michigan State, discouraged him from playing both sports for the Spartans. Gates helped the Golden Flashes reach the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament as a junior. He earned Associated Press All-American honorable mention accolades as a senior, averaging 20.6 points and 7.7 rebounds per game, but NFL scouts kept tabs on him and the rest is history.
“Antonio is an amazing human being who also happens to be one of the greatest players in NFL history. I’m thrilled to see him get the recognition he so deeply deserves,” Chargers owner Dean Spanos said in a statement on the team’s website. “To accomplish what Antonio has, never having played college football and going undrafted, is a testament to perseverance, hard work and maximizing your God-given ability. … He redefined the tight end position in a way no one has since Kellen Winslow, and I can’t wait to see him put on that gold jacket for the first time this summer in Canton.”
Gates will be the 12th Charger to be enshrined, joining wide receivers Lance Alworth and Charline Joiner, offensive tackle Ron Mix, coaches Sid Gillman and Don Coryell, quarterback Dan Fouts, tight end Kellen Winslow, defensive end Fred Dean, linebacker Junior Seau, Tomlinson (running back) and executive Bobby Beathard.
Sharpe got in as a seniors candidate in voting announced Thursday night at the NFL Honors and will join younger brother Shannon as the first siblings ever inducted into the Hall. Two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning fell short and won’t join older brother Peyton in Canton, Ohio, this year. Neither will former Rams receiver Torry Holt, who was a finalist for the sixth consecutive year.
Shannon delivered the news directly to Sterling, and they will be together forever at the Hall after the induction ceremony on Aug. 2.
“I don’t think that has really set in yet,” Sterling Sharpe said. “It’s one of those situations where the closer it gets to having the same color jacket he has and standing in same place he stood and being able to have a conv about the journey to get there I think it will set in. But right now it hasn’t hit home yet.”
While the small class is a change from past years when at least seven people got inducted in each of the previous 12 classes, it isn’t unprecedented.
There were only four inductees in the 2005 class and there were 18 other years with three or four inductees since the first class of 17 was enshrined in 1963.
“You almost appreciate it more,” Jared Allen said. “Nothing comes easy. When I found out it was only four, it became more special. There’s a true emphasis on what it means to be a Hall of Famer. Clearly we fit that. For me, it was kind of a sigh of relief.”
New rules were instituted this year after a push by Hall of Famers to make the Hall more exclusive, and that led directly to the smaller class. The modern era candidates were voted from 15 down to seven in the final stage, instead of five in past years.
The 49 voters then got to vote for five of the seven with anyone reaching 80% or finishing in the top three getting into the Hall. In past years, the five finalists all got an up-or-down vote with all five getting in for the past 17 years.
The candidates from the seniors, coach and contributor categories were then all placed in a group with voters picking three. Candidates also needed 80% support with the top finisher automatically getting in even if he fell short.
Hall of Fame spokesman Rich Desrosiers said no decision was made on whether to keep this system in place for 2026 but said one year might be too soon to draw any conclusions.
Jared Allen was a four-time All-Pro who finished his career with 136 sacks, including a league-leading 22 in 2011 for Minnesota. He also led the league in sacks with 15½ for Kansas City in 2007 and reached double digits in seven straight seasons. His final game was a Super Bowl loss for Carolina against Denver in the 2015 season.
Eric Allen starred for 14 seasons as a top cornerback in the NFL and never had to move to safety as he aged. Allen’s career spanned from the “Fog Bowl” game in 1988 when he starred for Philadelphia as a rookie to the “Tuck Rule” game in the 2001 season for Oakland in his final game.
Allen finished with 54 interceptions, including eight returned for touchdowns. He was a first-team All-Pro in 1989 and had two other seasons as a second-team selection.
He got in on his 19th year of eligibility.
“Rarely does life play out like you want it to,” Eric Allen said. “There’s always some curves and bends. But time always reveals the truth. … It took maybe time for people to see the complexity of my situation.”
Sharpe had a short but productive career for the Green Bay Packers from 1988-94. His best season came in 1992, when he became the sixth player to win the receiving triple crown, setting an NFL record with 108 catches for 1,461 yards and 13 touchdowns.
He broke his own record with 112 catches in 1993 and led the NFL with 18 touchdown receptions in his final season, 1994, before a neck injury cut his career short.
Sharpe was a three-time All-Pro and had 595 catches for 8,134 yards and 65 TDs. He trailed only Jerry Rice over his seven-year career in receptions and TD catches.
The Sharpe brothers will join three father-son tandems in the Hall: Tim and Wellington Mara; Art Rooney Sr. and Dan Rooney; and Ed and Steve Sabol.
The four other modern-era candidates who reached the final stage but fell short were offensive tackle Willie Anderson, linebacker Luke Kuechly, kicker Adam Vinatieri and Holt. Those four automatically advance to the final 15 for next year’s voting.
The other eight finalists who got cut earlier were Manning, offensive lineman Jahri Evans, receiver Steve Smith Sr., defensive end/linebacker Terrell Suggs, running back Fred Taylor, receiver Reggie Wayne, safety Darren Woodson and offensive lineman Marshal Yanda.
The seniors candidates who fell short were linebacker Maxie Baughan and offensive lineman Jim Tyrer, with Mike Holmgren falling short as the coach and Ralph Hay as the contributor.