Chiefs great Jim Tyrer and the debate surrounding his place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Across each sports, each caller people successful their respective Hall of Fame brings astir spirited debate. This twelvemonth for the Pro Football Hall of Fame is nary different. 

But for 1 finalist, the circumstances surrounding his spot successful Canton are much than conscionable a lawsuit of championships and stats. His spot successful the Hall of Fame volition apt travel down to a tragic lawsuit of a murder-suicide. 

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There are 5 full finalists for the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame elder class, including a manager and a contributor. The players up for ballot are Maxie Baughan, Sterling Sharpe and Jim Tyrer. 

Of the three, the biggest questions situation Tyrer.

Who is Jim Tyrer?

Kansas City Chiefs tackle Jim Tyrer and Miami Dolphins antiaircraft extremity Mel Branch successful enactment astatine the Orange Bowl connected Sept. 28, 1968. (Rod Hanna-USA Today Sports)

Born successful Newark, Ohio, connected Feb. 25, 1939, Jim Tyrer is mostly considered 1 of the astir ascendant violative tackles of his era. 

After playing shot astatine Ohio State, wherever helium was an All-America choice, Tyrer began his 14-year playing vocation with the Dallas Texans of the American Football League successful 1961. His sheer size and spot astatine near tackle translated to aboriginal occurrence connected the field, which carried implicit with the team’s determination to Kansas City and the eventual merger with the NFL.

Tyrer was a three-time AFL champion and nine-time AFL All-Star, and helium helped the Chiefs triumph the franchise’s archetypal Super Bowl successful 1970. He was a starter successful each of his 13 seasons with Chiefs, playing successful 180 consecutive games for the third-longest streak successful squad history. 

Tyrer was selected arsenic a subordinate of the AFL’s All-Decade Team of the 1960s and is successful the Chiefs’ Hall of Fame. He played his last play for Washington successful 1974. 

It’s nary uncertainty that Tyrer’s vocation is worthy of information for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but the tragic events that took spot connected Sept. 15, 1980, person kept his sanction disconnected the ballot for much than 40 years. 

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Tyrer’s death

Offensive lineman Jim Tyrer of the Kansas City Chiefs connected the sidelines during a crippled connected Sept. 28, 1970, against the Colts astatine Memorial Stadium successful Baltimore. (Diamond Images/Getty Images)

Tyrer was a finalist for the Hall of Fame successful his archetypal twelvemonth of eligibility and was mostly expected to beryllium selected. But successful the autumn of 1980, that would change. 

According to KCTV’s reporting astatine the time, Tyrer changeable his wife, Martha, dormant conscionable aft 4 a.m. successful the chamber of their location portion their 4 children slept earlier yet taking his ain life. He was 41 and Martha was 40. 

While those closest to the family, including teammates, were shocked by the news, reports would soon aboveground that determination were issues. 

ESPN newsman Mark Fainaru-Wada told NPR past week that Tyrer had struggled to find enactment aft his playing vocation had ended and that the household was experiencing fiscal struggles. There were besides rumors that Tyrer had been dealing with "depression" and "paranoia." 

But successful the astir 45 years that person passed and with the improvement of subject with respect to the semipermanent effects of playing successful interaction sports, galore reason that Tyrer apt suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).  

Dr. Doug Paone, who treated Tyrer days earlier the murder-suicide, told the Kansas City Star’s Vahe Gregorian successful December that helium is assured that Tyrer had CTE. 

"If it walks similar a duck, it quacks, it has webbed feet and h2o goes disconnected its back, it’s not a zebra: It’s CTE," helium said. "(Tyrer) would beryllium the poster kid for CTE."

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What the voters say

Kansas City Chiefs violative tackle Jim Tyrer connected the sidelines of a crippled connected Oct. 2, 1971. (Denver Post via Getty Images)

At slightest 3 of the 5 elder finalists volition beryllium elected to the Pro Football Hall. They volition request 80% of the votes from the Selection Committee, who volition beryllium allowed to ballot for 3 finalists. If nary person that percentage, past the sole finalist with the astir votes volition beryllium inducted into the 2025 class.  

For Tyrer, the voters look divided. ESPN spoke to some past period erstwhile Tyrer was named a finalist. 

"It's morally abhorrent and unacceptable to enactment a murderer successful the Hall of Fame if you person the powerfulness to bash otherwise," longtime elector Jason Cole told the outlet, adding that helium has "incredible compassion for the family."

Cole noted that considering CTE would beryllium "opening up a elephantine tin of worms."

Opposite of that, Gregorian told ESPN that CTE could beryllium utilized to explicate the calamity that led to Tyrer and his wife’s untimely death. 

"I deliberation erstwhile you spot that this is simply a man, who had for decades lived a beingness that was admired by many, that this alteration successful him was caused by [CTE]," Gregorian said, "... I deliberation to me, it says this was due to the fact that of terrible encephalon damage, not being of a willful enactment by this person. I don't know, that makes maine look astatine it differently."

The bylaws of the enactment process instruct voters not to see immoderate off-the-field contributions – bully oregon atrocious – successful their decision-making. The people of 2025 volition beryllium announced adjacent Thursday astatine the NFL Honors successful New Orleans up of Super Bowl LIX. 

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