Six-time Super Bowl champ Robert Kraft, alongside pioneering quarterback Doug Williams, has been named among the nine semifinalists in the contributor category for the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.
The list of candidates, released on Wednesday, was narrowed down by a Blue Ribbon committee that reduced the initial forty contenders to twenty-five. The committee will reconvene on November 12 to select one finalist, who will then be presented to the full selection committee for consideration early next year.
The chosen contributor will be evaluated alongside one candidate from coaching and three senior candidates. To gain induction into the Hall of Fame, one to three of these finalists must secure at least 80% of the votes from the comprehensive committee.
Since acquiring the New England Patriots in 1994, Kraft has transformed the team into one of the NFL’s most formidable franchises. In 2000, he appointed Bill Belichick as head coach, subsequently guiding the team to six Super Bowl victories between 2001 and 2018.
Three additional team owners are part of the semifinalist group, including two who relocated their franchises during their ownership. Art Modell was a key figure in the league, serving as the chairman of the NFL’s television committee, but faced backlash from Cleveland fans after he moved his team to Baltimore in 1996.
Bud Adams initially founded the Houston Oilers and played a substantial role in the American Football League (AFL) before relocating his team to Tennessee and renaming it the Titans. Ralph Hay, who owned the Canton Bulldogs from 1918 to 1922, was instrumental in convening a meeting that led to the establishment of the NFL.
Art Rooney Jr., a member of the Steelers’ ownership family, is also among the candidates.
Doug Williams made history by becoming the first African American starting quarterback to lead a team to victory in the Super Bowl with Washington during the 1987 season. After his playing career, he transitioned into a role within the team’s front office.
Other notable candidates include John Wooten, a long-serving scout and executive who became the chairman of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, which advocates for the hiring of more minority head coaches in the NFL; as well as seasoned executives Frank “Bucko” Kilroy and Seymour Siwoff, former owner and president of the Elias Sports Bureau.