Curtis Martin does not make cut for Hall of Fame

It really should come as no surprise that Curtis Martin did not make the cut for this year's NFL Hall of Fame class.

Martin lost out to Bears defensive end Richard Dent, Cowboys cornerback Deion Sanders, Rams running back Marshall Faulk, Broncos tight end Shannon Sharpe, Rams linebacker Les Richter, Redskins linebacker Jim Hanburger, and NFL Films creator Ed Sabol.

Martin released the following statement:

"I think the voting committee did a great job selecting the 2011 class," the statement read. "If I were a part of the committee I can't say that I would have voted any differently. I'm not being modest at all, but I truly don't feel that there's anyone in this year's class that I should have bested in the voting process. Of course I would have loved to get in this year but, number one the inductees truly deserved it, number two there's always next year! I thank you all for the recognition and congratulations to this year's inductees!"

It's not surprising that Martin didn't make it. He will get his day, but let's remember that Martin was really a great compiler than he was a great running back.

Eight times in his 11 year career, he carried the football over 300 times a season, and was one of the last backs to carry the ball about 30 + times a game. He was not a flashy back, probably not as good as Emmit Smith, Barry Sanders, Faulk, or even Jerome Bettis, as he averaged only 4.0 yards per carry in his career.

However, unlike a lot of those names, he ran for over 1,000 yards in each of his first 10 years in the NFL.

Martin will always be remembered as a guy who helped spur the turnaround in Jets history. When he came over in 1998 to join his old Patriots coach Bill Parcells, together they turned around a sad-sacked franchise into a winner.