4 former Ravens named to Hall of Fame semifinalists list including Anquan Boldin

The Baltimore Ravens have had quite a few Hall of Famers play for their franchise in just a short time of existence. Of course, most will immediately turn to the likes of Jonathan Odgen, Ed Reed, and Ray Lewis when discussing Ravens Hall of Famers.

But others such as Deion Sanders, Rod Woodson, and Shannon Sharpe all spent time in Baltimore and have found themselves enshrined in Canton.

Perhaps more could be on the way.

On Wednesday, the NFL revealed their 26 semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2022. And on the shortlist were four players who played for the Ravens during their NFL careers.

The most notable of which were wide receivers Anquan Boldin and Steve Smith Sr. who each had memorable stints in Baltimore. Elsewhere, former wide receiver and return man Devin Hester as well as offensive tackle Willie Anderson are also among the 26 semifinalists.

The Ravens could see as many as four former players inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2022

Both Smith and Hester are on the ballot for the first year in 2022, and the fact that both players made the list of semifinalists bodes well for their chances of getting in, whether this year or in the future.

As for Boldin, he’s been on the ballot before, but this is his first time making it to the semifinalists cut-down.

A second-round pick in the 2003 NFL Draft, Boldin only spent three years in Baltimore, but they were memorable ones. Boldin helped lead the Ravens to a victory in Super Bowl XLVII and put together three very productive seasons with the team.

When he retired in 2019, he chose to retire as a member of the Ravens despite only playing three of his 14 seasons with the organization.

As for Smith, he finished out his career in Baltimore playing with the team from 2014-2016. Although if he makes it to Canton, it’ll almost definitely be as a member of the Carolina Panthers who he spent 13 years with.

Hester and Anderson only had brief stints with the Ravens with the former appearing in 12 games in 2016 while the latter started 11 of 14 games in 2008 — both of which were their final NFL seasons, respectively.

15 finalists will be selected in January before the actual ceremony takes place on Thursday, Feb. 10 at 9 p.m. ET. Here’s to hoping that at least a couple of these players make it all the way to Canton.