LeRoy Butler had the numbers, the awards, and a Super Bowl ring. But the former Green Bay Packers pro safety had to watch other players take their places in Canton while his own HOF call kept getting pushed back. Butler finally made it in 2022, but his 16-year wait raised a question that was hard to ignore: how did one of the NFL's most accomplished safeties have to wait so long?
John Lynch Got His Hall of Fame Call Before LeRoy Butler
LeRoy Butler gives his prediction of the Packers/Raiders game
Butler became eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007, but he did not become a finalist until 2020. By then, his career record already made a strong case.
He finished with 38 interceptions and 20 sacks in 181 games. He also earned four first-team All-Pro selections. John Lynch, who entered the Hall in 2021, had two first-team All-Pro nods. Butler also recorded more interceptions and sacks despite playing 43 fewer games.
So what separated the two? Their careers after football offer one possible explanation. Lynch moved into national broadcasting just six days after announcing his retirement. He later became general manager of the San Francisco 49ers. Butler, meanwhile, stayed close to Wisconsin, working in local sports media and radio.
Former Packers teammate Gary Ellerson also felt Butler's quiet nature played a part. In an ESPN interview ahead of the 2022 induction, Ellerson said Butler was "so unassuming and was not a self-promoter." He also recalled that Butler rarely wanted to discuss his Hall of Fame chances on their radio show.
That does not establish why voters passed over Butler, but it offers a possible explanation for how his case remained overlooked for so long.
His Mother's Advice Helped Him Stay Patient Until 2022
Butler had another reason to keep believing. His mother, Eunice, never doubted that he would reach Canton. In fact, they started writing his induction speech together in 2010, a decade before he became a finalist.
In an August 5, 2022 feature by Packers.com, Butler recalled the advice she gave him: "Just enjoy the process." Eunice died in November 2016, before she could witness his induction.
Butler finally received the news on February 10, 2022, after missing out in 2020 and 2021. Speaking to Packers.com ahead of his induction, he said: "I wish she was here with me to hear the news. But I know she was with God, saying, 'I told you.'"
On August 6, 2022, Butler officially entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After 16 years of waiting, the Packers legend finally had his place among football's greatest.
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