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Steve “A Tisker, A” Tasker
Published: July 22, 2009
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Does Steve Tasker belong in Canton?
How do you judge a person’s merit for enshrinement?
Do you base it on how that person is compared to other players at his position on an all time level?
Do you base it on how that person changed the game, or changed the opposing teams game plan for that player?
Or, do you base it solely on hardware like MVP’s, All Pro’s, Pro Bowl’s and Super Bowl rings?
It’s clear that people get into the Hall for different reasons, but it is also clear that all that are in the hall are considered the best of all time at their respective positions.
For example, even though Kelly and Marino don’t have the hardware that Montana boasts—all three are considered all time great QB’s.
The Hall is reserved for the crem de’ la crem, the best of the best, right? So why, since Tasker is clearly the greatest special teammer of all time, is he not in the Hall? He is a seven-time Pro Bowl gunner, as well as the only special teammer to be named Pro Bowl MVP.
Don’t forget that as a special teammer, he was named All Pro five, count em, FIVE different times. In the Pro Bowl where he won the MVP, he had four tackles, a forced fumble, and a blocked field goal.
So here you have his seven Pro Bowls, five-time Associated Press All Pro, four Super Bowl appearances as well as he became the second person in Super Bowl history to block a punt—I think his highest honor was his final Pro Bowl nod.
He received a trip to Hawaii when he never even took a snap on special teams. This is sort of like Magic Johnson “Esq” getting voted into the NBA All Star game after retiring. Tasker played in 195 games making 204 special team tackles, and blocking seven punts.
Back in 2007, Sports Illustrated writer Peter King was asked to assemble an all time dream team, and sure enough his special teams roster looked like this:
Kicker: Adam Vinatieri
Punter: Sammy Baugh
KR: Gayle Sayers
And at a position listed solely as “PLAYER” he has Mr. Tasker
Do you see the company he keeps? The kind of players he is mentioned with?
But here’s the kicker!
The same 36 Hall of Fame voters put Steve “A Tisker A” Tasker on the NFL’s 75th Anniversary Team as a special teammer, but not in the Hall of Fame—A little confusing if not contradictory, don’t you think?
The hardest thing about his bid for Canton is there are no real stats to compare him to other defenders. There are no special teammers that affected the game the way he did—but you can not deny his impact on the field
So the correct answer, is YES!
