Jacksonville Jaguars legend Tony Boselli is set to get his gold jacket this summer as he gets inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But some comments from Hall of Fame pass rusher Bruce Smith are putting a damper on the celebration.
In a recent Instagram post, Smith seemingly took issue with Boselli’s performance against him in a famous 1996 playoff game being a part of the all-world left tackle’s Hall of Fame qualifications. But he made it clear that there’s “no beef” between the two over it.
“Tony and I are cool,” Smith told The Associated Press, via ESPN. “Tony and I have no beef with each other. And I hope and I’d like to see Tony enjoy this process… But I needed to address several of his campaign supporters because it set a bad precedent.”
But that isn’t to say that Smith is fully on board with Boselli’s Hall of Fame candidacy either. He has previously made statements suggesting that Boselli had too short of a career and wasn’t a proper blind-side defender.
Tony Boselli and his Hall of Fame candidacy has certainly been a controversial topic for many years – which is probably why it took 15 years for him to get in.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 1995 NFL Draft, Boselli played just seven seasons. But he accomplished a lot in those 91 games he played, making three First-Team All-Pro selections and five Pro Bowls.
Unfortunately, complications from shoulder surgery prematurely ended his career after the 2001 season.
Even so, the length of his career might be what held him back for so long. But as an active player, he had few – if any – equals in the NFL.
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