Today I am going to argue that too many people have underappreciated and forgotten the greatness that was Simeon Rice, and why I think he should be in the Hall of Fame, why he isn't yet, and why its no guarantee. On a personal note, I loved Simeon Rice. He was always a foundational piece of my teams in Franchise Mode for Madden 2003/2004 era as a kid. Both He and Jevon Kearse were known for speed and had like 80+ speed ratings for Defensive Ends. I used to try to get them both and set sack records haha. Enough about Madden, when it was actually good, now on to Simeon Rice the actual football player.
Selected Career Highlights
- 3x Pro Bowl Selection
- 1x All Pro (1st Team)
- 2x All Pro (2nd Team)
- NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year (1996)
- Super Bowl XXXVII Champion
- 122 Sacks (currently 22nd all time)
Why he isn't in the Hall of Fame
Its no surprise that the major complaints with Simeon Rice are the lack of accolades. He also gets down votes due to his run defense and lack of tackles, however voters ignore those figures for players like Dwight Freeney and other pass rushers. I'd also say that a challenge he faces is that his peers were incredible, especially in Tampa. Take for example the 2002 Tampa Buccaneers who won the Super Bowl, that defense included Hall of Famers Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks, Ronde Barber, and John Lynch. The only other issue voters may see is his rather rapid decline/end to his career and the lack of longevity.
Why he should be in the Hall of Fame
What Rice may lack in the individual accolades such as Pro Bowls/All Pro's, he makes up for in narrative and comparison to other greats. This is where I think Tampa Bay Buccaneers likely failed Simeon Rice the most. Getting elected often does require a story and support from an organization, and the Bucs have been zero help to Rice. For example, the Bucs didn't put Rice in their Ring of Honor until this year/2025 despite retiring in 2007. Below are a few interesting narrative points that I think should carry some weight.
- Arguably should have been the Super Bowl MVP. 5 Tackles, 2 Sacks, 1 Forced Fumble.
- In his first 10 seasons (1996-2005) he led all players in Sacks with 119.
- 4 Seasons of 14+ sacks. Tied with JJ Watt, TJ Watt, Myles Garrett, Jared Allen, and DeMarcus Ware. Only Reggie White, Bruce Smith, and Kevin Greene had more than 4.
- 22nd all time in Sacks. Of the 21 people a head of him here is the breakdown. 15 are in the Hall of Fame. 2 are still active. The remaining 4 are Terrell Suggs who was a finalist this year but didn't make it. He will eventually. John Abraham who is still eligible, Leslie O'Neal who gets lost among his peers as well, then Robert Mathis who was a Semi Finalist this year and will probably get in eventually before Rice.
- Has a favorable comparison with Dwight Freeney who made the Hall this past year, Freeney had 125.5 sacks in 218 career games. Rice 122 sacks in 174 games.
Final Word
I think that maybe Rice will eventually make the Hall of Fame. Perhaps momentum builds now that Tampa seems willing to acknowledge him with a way too late Ring of Honor. He still might end up as a veterans committee guy. Still no guarantee for a guy who was dominant yet forgotten, and whose stats continue to get passed by in a pass heavy league.
Past entries in this series
Donald Driver
Charles Tillman