Lions legend Lomas Brown not selected to Pro Football Hall of Fame

Detroit Lions legendary offensive tackle Lomas Brown is going to have to wait another year to get his gold jacket.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame has announced on Good Morning Football the 15 modern-era finalists for enshrinement, with Brown not included among them. Notable players who were selected as finalists include quarterbacks Drew Brees and Eli Manning, running back Frank Gore, wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Torry Holt, linebacker Luke Kuechly, and kicker Adam Vinatieri.

Notably absent from the list is QB Philip Rivers, who was a semi-finalist before his unexpected return reset his eligibility clock. Rivers will not be eligible again for another five years.

This was the first Hall of Fame cycle in which Brown was a semi-finalist, which means he's trending in the right direction. Voters are beginning to take notice of Brown's impressive résumé. Brown played for 18 seasons, with his 263 games played the most by an OT. Brown predominantly played for the Lions, where he played 11 of his seasons. There, Brown was selected to six of his seven Pro Bowl nods, as well as his First-Team All-Pro selection and his two Second-Team All-Pros.

Brown also played with the Arizona Cardinals, where he was selected to his final Pro Bowl, along with the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants, before landing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in his final season. In that final season in 2002, Brown won his only Super Bowl after falling short in his previous attempt with the Giants two seasons earlier.

All is not lost as Brown will remain eligible for next year's cycle. He's gained a bit of momentum, so expect the Lions organization to take advantage of that and push harder in 2026.

No Lions among the 2026 Hall of Fame class

With Brown missing the cut, the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame class will feature zero Lions. Outside of Brown, former head coach Buddy Parker also reached the semi-finalist stage for coaches and contributors. For as successful as Parker was, having led the Lions to two NFL Championships, it was tough for him to compete with the six Super Bowls fellow semi-finalist Bill Belichick won.

Other Lions that fell short of their Hall of Fame bid include three-time First-Team All-Pro WR Herman Moore and fan-favorite kicker Jason Hanson. Both Moore and Hanson were nominated, but didn't advance further.

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As for yet-to-be-eligible Lions, the next likely candidate would be former defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh. Suh was a member of the 2010s All-Decade Team, which is as good an argument as any for enshrinement. Based on Pro Football Reference's Hall of Fame Monitor, only two DTs score higher than Suh (84.58): Kevin Williams (105.53) and Aaron Donald (181.18). Williams is currently one of the 15 modern era finalists. However, Suh does fall short of the average score of a Hall of Fame DT (102), which will get higher once Donald gets in.

It's definitely a shame that Brown and other Lions greats won't be enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 2026. If nothing else, the current Lions era is sure to produce numerous Hall of Famers, with OT Penei Sewell already on the doorstep of being considered one. Others like WR Amon-Ra St. Brown and RB Jahmyr Gibbs are on track as well with their record-breaking start to their careers. Let's hope Brown, Moore, Hanson, and Suh all make it in before then.