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The Pro Football Hall of Fame welcomed four more legends on Saturday in Canton, Ohio, concluding a historic week as fans, media and countless greats of the game came out to honor the hallowed halls’ newest class.
Here are highlights from the Class of 2025’s speeches and enshrinements:
Jared Allen
“In marketing and branding, there’s a concept called sell your why. The ‘what’ is your product. There’s a million what’s in this world. But the ‘why’ is what makes you different. The why is your long game. It’s what drives you to get up and take whatever steps necessary to achieve your goal. My why can be summed up with three things: fear, respect and the pursuit of greatness.”
“When I talk about fear, I’m not talking about that type of fear that cripples you and makes you avoid something. I’m talking about that healthy fear of failure. That fear that motivates you to do whatever you can to succeed. That type of fear that lets you get knocked down and then realize you don’t want to get knocked down again, so you pick yourself up, your learn and improve. And respect, I’ve only played this game for two reasons. The respect of my peers and the respect of those who came before me. I will never forget the day I got an email from Jack Youngblood telling me that he thought I played the game the right way. That to me is worth more than any All-Pro I’ve ever gotten. And the pursuit of greatness, when you respect something or someone so much that you want to honor that thing or that person by being the best you can possibly be. That’s why I had the NFL sack leaders taped up in my locker every season, so I could show up to work and physically see greatness, and never allow myself to feel like I arrived. Now, I apply this why to everything in my life.”
“This jacket is a direct reflection of all of you who have poured into my life and my career. I might be the one wearing this jacket, but I hope every time you see this jacket you see yourself.”
“The Panthers, thank you for making the trade and allowing me to finish my career with my hand in the dirt and being able to play in Super Bowl 50 in my hometown.”
“The Bears, eh, well, I’m teasing. When you blow your back out, catch pneumonia, only have five sacks, I don’t think they were too happy either. But you cannot have the game of football without the Halas family, so thank you so much.”
“To the Chiefs, I cannot thank the Hunt family enough for making an eight-year-old’s dream come true. To be drafted to such a historic franchise was absolutely incredible. And I’ll never forget the embraces the great Lamar Hunt would give after every single game.”
“And, of course, the Vikings. As a Norseman by blood, because I am Norwegian, it was only fitting I became a Viking. … The entire Wilf family, I don’t think I can every truly express the depths of my gratitude to your entire organization. I’m a firm believer that God puts people in your life at the appropriate times, and what you did for the growth of my career, and more importantly, the people that you surrounded me with in that organization helped me grow as a man, that is why I will forever call the Vikings my home.”