Finally, a "Hog" is in the Hall.
Redskins great Russ Grimm has been selected for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2010.
Grimm earned his place among the NFL's greats as a punishing, physical offensive lineman for Redskins teams that won three Super Bowl championships from 1982-91.
He was voted into the Hall after being a finalist each of the last six years.
"As everyone knows, when you're playing offensive line it takes more than just one person up front, and I was lucky enough to be surrounded by a great bunch of guys and be on some great football teams," Grimm said. "I'm so excited. It's a real privilege to be a part of this class."
Reaction to Grimm's selection included comments from Redskins owner Daniel M. Snyder and former Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs.
"Our Redskins fans have always appreciated the Hogs," Snyder said. "This is a long deserved honor and we are proud to have Russ as a member of the Hall of Fame. Hopefully Russ is the first of the Hogs to be inducted in Canton representing one of the greatest offensive lines in NFL history."
Added Gibbs: "I'm thrilled for Russ. He is very deserving. He was a big part of our success and our three Super Bowl championships. He was a versatile performer that could play center, guard and tackle and was a great leader.
"He is a great addition to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and I know there are a lot of Redskins fans that are very happy right now and I'm sure many of them will be in Canton this summer to cheer him on."
The 2010 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony is scheduled for Aug. 7 in Canton, Ohio.
Grimm played center and guard for the Redskins from 1981-91 and earned four consecutive trips to the Pro Bowl from 1983-86. Grimm was also named to the NFL's All-Decade Team for the 1980s.
He was an original member of "The Hogs," Joe Bugel's dominating group of offensive linemen who set the tone for the offense during the decade.
Grimm went on to become a tight ends and offensive line coach with the Redskins. He is currently serving as assistant head coach-offensive line with the Arizona Cardinals.
In addition, he has been a candidate for head coaching vacancies the last few years.
Along with Hall of Famers Gibbs, John Riggins, Art Monk and Darrell Green, Grimm was an integral part in leading the Redskins to Super Bowl championships in 1982, 1987 and 1991.
The Hall of Fame's selection committee met on Saturday, Feb. 6 in Miami, site of Super Bowl XLIV, to determine this year's inductees. The announcement was carried live on NFL Network.
Grimm joins Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith, San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice, Denver Broncos running back Floyd Little, New Orleans Saints defensive end Rickey Jackson, Minnesota Vikings defensive end John Randle, and Detroit Lions cornerback Dick LeBeau as part of the 2010 Hall of Fame class.
-- MORE REACTION ON GRIMM'S SELECTION TO HALL OF FAME
Joe Bugel
"He was one of the most complete football players, and people, that I've ever coached. He could play all the positions – center, guard and tackle. He was the leader by example. He wasn't a loudmouth. He just came to work every day. It's a well deserved honor for a great, great football player and a great, great friend."
Jeff Bostic
"It's a great day for the Redskins organization. It's a great day for all the members of the Hogs. We finally got one in. Possibly down the road, Joe Jacoby will get in too. Our team got another one in the Hall of Fame, and that's confirmation for the work we did in the 80's and early 90's."
Joe Jacoby
"It's a great moment. I sat here and cheered, yelled and screamed like I did two years ago when they put Art Monk in finally after all those years. I'm elated. He was my roommate for 11 years and I guess there'll be some celebrating out in Canton this August. He had the toughness, as a guy from Pennsylvania. I think he had tremendous leadership qualities, including his uncanny ability to lead on the field. His intelligence and his ability to make things happen on the football field helped lead us to championships. We had a very good player and very good teammate and he helped us come together on and off the field."
Joe Theismann
"This is a great honor for Russ and for the Washington Redskins organization. I thought he could have been a Hall of Fame offensive lineman at any of three positions. He could have gone in as a guard, which he did, a center or a tackle. He was that versatile and that special of a football player."
Rick "Doc" Walker
"It's the ultimate honor that a guy could receive, and it's so well deserved. He really embodies what I think an offensive lineman is all about. He was the toughest guy on the block. He was mean. He had a nasty attitude, and he was a smart guy. He played the role of a Hell's Angel, but the guy is really smart. He would break an opponent down on film. He had great technique. He was explosive. There was nothing he couldn't do. He probably could have been a Hall of Fame center if he had stayed at center his whole career. A lot of it had to do with the fact that when he grew up, he played quarterback and fullback, he was an athlete trapped in this big body."
Donnie Warren
"He's a guy that I think clearly deserves it. He came from a group that in the 80's was one of the premier offensive lines in that era. He deserves it so bad. I'd been hoping that he would get in these last couple of years, and I'm just ecstatic that he finally got in, it's well deserved. He was a hard-nosed player. He was a fierce, fierce competitor. He wouldn't let injuries knock him down at all. He was a guy that I saw get punched in the eye, get stitches, and get carted off the field. He had blood rolling down his face, had stitches, and within 10 minutes, you look in the huddle, and he's right back next to you. He's a fierce competitor, and just a tough guy."
Mark May
"It is definitely long overdue. The Hogs were one of the greatest offensive lines of all time and Russ was one of our best players. Congratulations to Russ. Deep down inside I am sure Russ thought he should be in the Hall of Fame. It was finally time for him. It was one of the years where they were talking about a lot of other players that should definitely go in ahead of Russ. I was watching SportsCenter while I was working out and they were talking about all of the glory guys, but [the Hall of Fame voters] got to the meat and potatoes and got to a player that definitely deserves to be in for the way that he played."
George Starke
"Obviously, everyone knows that Russ is a Hog, but not everyone knows that the name Hogs came from a description of him. He was lying on the ground at the end of a blocking drill and Joe Bugel walked by and Russ had his stomach peeking out of his shirt. Buges said, 'Man, Russ get up you look like a Hog laying on the ground.' After that, the rest of us decided to poke fun at Buges and wear white shirts to practice and we all had Hogs written on them. Buges said to us, 'Why are you doing that?' We said, Because we are in solidarity with Russ and if you call him a Hog, you have to call us all Hogs.' That is where the name came from. I think Russ is the greatest guard to ever play pro football. He and Randy White had so many battles and Russ won most of those battles and Randy is in the Hall of Fame. I think it is only fitting that Russ make it in."
