Former Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Albert Lewis is worthy of a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame once again announced their finalists for induction. Among the 15 finalists were three former Kansas City Chiefs: defensive end Jared Allen, cornerback Darelle Revis, and cornerback Albert Lewis. Of the three, Lewis played the longest in Kansas City.
Lewis was drafted by the Chiefs in the third round of the 1983 NFL Draft and went on to play 11 seasons in Kansas City, and 5 more with the Raiders. While a member of the Chiefs, Lewis went to 4 Pro Bowls and was named an All-Pro twice. His 42 career interceptions put him 67th on the All-Time list.
Lewis also excelled in the special teams game and has been lauded as one of the game’s very best on that side of the ball. He blocked 12 career kicks—11 punts and a field goal. He blocked four punts apiece in 1986 and 1990. Lewis holds the NFL record for most blocked punts all-time.
While his accolades and career numbers aren’t exactly eye-popping, Lewis was one of the formidable cornerbacks of the 1980s and many of his contemporaries shared that sentiment; Jerry Rice once called Lewis “the toughest” cornerback he ever faced. “Albert was one of the toughest guys I had to play against,” agreed Hall of Fame wide receiver Tim Brown.
Lewis’s defensive backs coach in Kansas City, Tony Dungy, had this to say about the cornerback.
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"If he played in a Super Bowl and had some winning teams at Kansas City, Albert would already be in the Hall of Fame,” Dungy said. “He was a very smart player, a very hard worker… everything you look for. I’d put him up there with (Hall of Famers Mel) Blount and (Mike) Haynes. Man-to-man, he was as good as Mel and Mike."
Dungy also said this about Albert on The Eye Test for Two podcast: “If I’m starting a secondary,” Dungy said, “and don’t have anybody on my team …and I can pick anybody … I’m picking him as my left corner first. There are some great ones – (Darrelle) Revis and Deion (Sanders) … guys who can do some things. But I know what I’m getting with Albert Lewis, and I’m going to build around that.”
NFL.com senior analyst Gil Brandt included Albert Lewis on his list of greatest NFL cornerbacks of all time, with Lewis coming in 24th out of 24 spots.
Lewis has the respect and admiration of his peers and those he played for, and his career ought to be remembered. Ultimately, is that not the purpose of the Pro Football Hall of Fame? To preserve that which we are afraid of losing? To ensure we do not lose players, teams, and stories to history?
Albert Lewis and his career is one such story the Pro Football Hall of Fame was made to preserve.