[News] The HOF Battle Over Art

[BR News]

In what has essentially become a yearly tradition, another class of NFL Hall of Famers will be announced Saturday and owner Art Modell won't be one of the names called.  Modell, who moved his Cleveland franchise to Baltimore in 1996 and was the Ravens' majority owner until 2004, was a Hall of Fame finalist in 2001 and semifinalist in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2010.  Ravens management is making a strong push to put that ritual to an end. And it cranked up its get-Art-in-the-Hall argument once again Wednesday during the State of the Ravens press conference.

[url=http://www.baltimoreravens.com/News/Articles/2010/02/The_HOF_Battle_Over_Art.aspx]View the full article[/url]

[jhonnyboy]

as a football fan from baltimore i have seen both sides. losing the colts and gaining the ravens. i understand feeling anger and hatred towards an owner that moves your team away but the cleveland fans did not fill the stands of the team they supposedly loved and the city would not give modell a new stadium so that city has themselves to blame. art modell chose baltimore a city that loves this team thru the good and the bad and for that he gets my vote and deserves to be in the hof.

[ravens0614]

well said jhonnyboy. he has to be in the hall along with chris carter some day

[loverj86]

art modell should have been a first round hall of famer,the fact that he isn't
shows how screwed up the selection process is.i still hate bob irsay but i
would never stand in the way of him getting into the hof.the fact that
some writers hold that strong of a grudge underscores the need for change.

[display name]

I hate the HF. It should all be online. Art Modell does deserve it. I got his autograph on a ticket.

[BaltimoreBeatdown]

Ryan- Great story on such an important topic. I was the one who brought this up at Wednesday's Press Conference and the subject was continued afterward as you correctly reported. I previously asked Coach Harbaugh about it back at Training Camp this summer when the nominees were originally named. Love to get a bit of "credit" for bringing up the topic and acknowledgment as proof-positive of my blog's relevant storylines (www.BaltimoreBeatdown.com). Thanks!

[Guest I-70WestRaven]

Art deserves to be in the Hall! He did alot for the game of football long before all this franchise moving garbage started! He's one of the "old school" owners whose contributions are being overlooked. Take into account the entire body of work, hey, the last time I checked there is a team in Cleveland and what do you know they named them the Browns! I wonder how that happened? Hey, they did'nt have to wait 12 years either, like say, Baltimore!

[HuttoRaven]

I have never left any negative comment on here before but something needs to be said about the swindler, money hungry Art Modell. He screwed Cleveland so bad and charged more than any other franchise for football tickets when the Browns were there. He also rented the stadium from the city and hosed the Indians out of a lot of profits and after everything came to light he held the team and all the history hostage because he would not front anything for a new stadium. I like Bisciotti but he is very biased on the topic and people need to realize that Modell was not all that great, he did some things early on to grow revenue for himself and indirectly the NFL but if he legitimately cared about the Browns they never would have moved. I love how it turnied out for Baltimore but his intentions were all $$$$$$$$, luckily us Ravens fans benefited from it. And to like Modell but not Isray would be the ultimately hypocrisy. Also remember it was Baltimore not Modell who refused the history and name of the Browns to come to Baltimore.
Read this : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Modell

[loverj86]

you have to remember that art is a businessman and his job is to make money
as is steve biscotti's.he obviously felt he could'nt survive in cleveland
as much as irsay felt he could'nt survive here.irsay drove the colts into the ground here so much so that attendance fell dramatically.he was posturing
trying to get a sweet deal,basically the same thing modell was doing.it worked
pretty well for both of them,as they both got the new stadiums they asked
for. i reserve my right to hate irsay as much as cleveland hates modell
that being said i would'nt stand in the way of irsay's induction.

[BaltimoreBeatdown]

Art Modell was one of the best owners in the history of the NFL. Others are misinformed if they think he was a money-grubbing owner and any comparison to Bob Irsay is incredibly inaccurate. Modell's ONLY business was the Cleveland Browns and he begged the city for a new stadium and the city gave one to baseball's Indians instead, leaving Modell with no choice at that point. Once he moved the team, the NFL said in order to get a new team in Cleveland they needed a new stadium and got one. Had that happened when Modell asked for it, they never would have moved. Cleveland's loss was Baltimore's gain.

[Riceisnice]

The Hall of Fame is in Canton, Ohio, the Browns are in Ohio, THAT is the only reason Art has been shunned, simple as that.

[Marc LaMartina]

5 Reasons Why Art Modell Should Be In The Hall Of Fame:

1. He brought a team to a city who was denied expansion more than 3 times after the Colts moved (where Cleveland was left with the Browns name AND got an expansion 3 years later). This righted an injustice that continued for 13 years, which was perpetuated by Redskins owner Kent Cooke, who continually said that the city of Baltimore didn't have enough fans to make a profit (man was he wrong!).

2. He worked tirelessly with ABC to create Monday Night Football and had his team play in the first ever MNF contest.

3. He was one of the first to go after black athletes, including making Ozzie Newsome the first black GM in the history of the NFL.

4. He was the ONLY elected NFL President. He also co-created NFL Films and became its first chairman.

5. Lastly, by moving the Browns, 12 cities would receive BRAND NEW stadiums, and guess who that includes...THE BROWNS.

[Marc LaMartina]

PS. to the guy who posted the negative comments (huttoraven)...do some more homework because wikipedia is definitely NOT a scholarly source. I read that article and the tone is incredibly biased and the facts are skewed. What would you expect from an article that leaves this as its top external link:

Modell Death Watch site: parody of fans of former Browns' and Ravens' owner Art Modell - http://www.ridertown.com/news/MDW/MDW.html

[crazyboutravens]

way to go Steve. Tell it like it is, a true disgrace to the NFL. That disgrace will also be apparent if there is a work stoppage in 2011. I hope the fans won't stand for either one.

[loverj86]

thank you marc,i agree 100% with your assessment of wikipedia's article
about art.if i did'nt know better i would think a cleveland fan wrote it.
when you read the one about irsay there is no mention of some of the dirty
tricks he pulled in the last few years the colts we're here.i lived
through it and remember the dispair and disinterest fans we're feeling at
the time.he said he wanted to move the colts long before he did and
let the onfield product wane.the last couple of years they we're pretty
bad.cleveland felt it more important to build the rock and roll hall of
fame than to replace their dilapidated football stadium and thats what
triggered art into moving his team.he just wanted them to put some
money into his stadium considering the fact that the browns we're
the only viable money making franchise in cleveland for a long time.

[The King]

Art Modell is a great owner and a good man, and his repeated exclusion from the Hall of Fame is nothing less than a disgrace. A mark of shame that all the NFL must bear because a few writers still pursue some kind of grudge against him. We can spend time listing off his accomplishments and arguing about what it meant to move the Browns to Baltimore. We can talk and talk about why he deserves it. But Steve Bisciotti really hit the nail on the head. It's an injustice.

[display name]

Art Modell is the reason for this team!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ravenskeeper]

The biggest thing Mr. Modell did was allow Cleveland to keep the Browns name and records and Cleveland fans should be grateful because they have their Browns back.Twice the Irsays refused to sell the colts name/records to Baltimore where they belong. I bring this up to show the difference in quality and responsible ownership. Mr Modell did the descent thing and I'd rather have our Raven anyhow.

[1defense]

You can't look at the Cleveland deal as a defining moment.Modell has did as much for this league as anyone,go back and look at some of the biggest,league developing moves that have taken place and you will find his name.The history and colors stayed in Cleveland, and the league got what has been a team with one of the best run front office's in the league and that is the Ravens.I made the move over from the Browns back in '96 and never,ever have looked back.If the mayor of Cleveland at that time cared so much about the team why did he refuse to help build a new stadium and didn't care about them playing in old wore out Memorial stadium.There are alot of thing's people tend to forget,he deserve's his spot in the Hall of Fame.