Well, Carolina Panthers great Luke Kuechly won’t be a first-ballot Hall of Famer here in 2025. But on the bright side, he does have a head-start for 2026.
The former linebacker was not named one of the four members for Canton’s upcoming class—a group that includes cornerback Eric Allen, wide receiver Sterling Sharpe, tight end Antonio Gates and former Panthers defensive end Jared Allen. Kuechly did, however, finish in the top seven of the voting amongst this year’s finalists—which, by a new rule, automatically makes him a finalist for next year.
Kuechly will move right into that stage alongside wide receiver Torry Holt, offensive tackle Willie Anderson and kicker Adam Vinatieri. That means there will be 11 spots available for 2026’s final round of deliberation.
Had he been officially sent to the Hall of Fame on Thursday night, Kuechly would have been just the 11th linebacker to make it in his first year of eligibility. Chuck Bednarik (1967), Ray Nitschke (1978), Dick Butkus (1979), Jack Ham (1988), Jack Lambert (1990), Mike Singletary (1998), Taylor (1999), Junior Seau (2015), Brian Urlacher (2018) and Ray Lewis (2018) remain the only 10.