At the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence reception on Thursday, many of the finalists for the Class of 2019 joined together for a night of fun before the selection weekend.
President of the Pro Football Hall of Fame David Baker greets Champ Bailey and his family at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
President of the Pro Football Hall of Fame David Baker greets Beth Bowlen Wallace at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
President of the Pro Football Hall of Fame David Baker greets Brittany Bowlen (left) and Beth Bowlen Wallace (center) at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey greets John Lynch at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch greets Champ Bailey at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch greets Champ Bailey at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch greets Champ Bailey at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Hall of Fame finalists Champ Bailey, John Lynch and Gil Brandt talk together at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Beth Bowlen Wallace at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch talks with President of the Pro Football Hall of Fame David Baker at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey talks with Ed Reed at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey talks with Ed Reed at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey talks with Ed Reed at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen greets Ed Reed at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen talks with Champ Bailey at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen greets Champ Bailey at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Hall of Fame finalist Champ Bailey meets fellow finalist Johnny Robinson at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen talks with Champ Bailey at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen greets Champ Bailey's family at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen takes a photo with Champ Bailey at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Beth Bowlen Wallace at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Beth Bowlen Wallace and Brittany Bowlen at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey greets Hall of Famer Darrell Green, who was his teammate when he started his career in Washington, at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey greets Hall of Famer Darrell Green, who was his teammate when he started his career in Washington, at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Hall of Fame finalists Champ Bailey and Tony Boselli shake hands at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey, Beth Bowlen Wallace and Brittany Bowlen at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Beth Bowlen Wallace and Brittany Bowlen shake hands with President of the Pro Football Hall of Fame David Baker as he calls up the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Champ Bailey, Beth Bowlen Wallace and Brittany Bowlen stand together during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Hall of Fame finalist Alan Faneca greets Beth Bowlen Wallace and Brittany Bowlen at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch greets Gil Brandt at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch greets Brittany Bowlen and Beth Bowlen Wallace during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch greets Champ Bailey during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch greets Kevin Mawae during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch, Champ Bailey, Beth Bowlen Wallace and Brittany Bowlen, among other Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
John Lynch greets Ed Reed during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Ed Reed greets Champ Bailey during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Beth Bowlen Wallace greets Ed Reed during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Brittany Bowlen greets Ed Reed during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Johnny Robinson, Champ Bailey, Beth Bowlen Wallace and Brittany Bowlen during a presentation of the Hall of Fame finalists at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
Ed Reed talks with John Lynch at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Celebration of Excellence Reception in Atlanta on January 31, 2019.
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ATLANTA — The Broncos’ Pro Football Hall of Fame finalists kicked off selection weekend with one common sentiment: It’s an honor to be considered for the game’s highest recognition.
“I’m feeling great, like every time,” Broncos of Ring Famer John Lynch said at Thursday night’s Celebration of Excellence. “I’m becoming a seasoned vet, six years a finalist. But you know every year people say, ‘Isn’t this grueling?’ Yeah, but it’s also an unbelievable honor just to be here, and you’re in the same group with guys like Champ Bailey — who I played with in Denver — and Steve Atwater and Kevin Mawae and Tony Boselli.
“You pinch yourself, because who would have ever thought that? It would be nice to someday get in. Hopefully it happens this year, but each and every year I do pinch myself to say, ‘You know what, you did all right.’”
Lynch is just one of four Broncos who could be elected to the Hall of Fame when the selection committee elects this year’s class on Saturday, and he could find himself being chosen alongside the likes of Bailey, Atwater and Owner Pat Bowlen.
Bowlen, who is one of the Contributor Committee’s nominees for this year’s class, was represented at Thursday’s kick-off event by his daughters Brittany Bowlen and Beth Bowlen Wallace.
Both women acknowledged Bowlen’s potential election began to feel more concrete as they joined this year’s finalists, Hall of Fame president David Baker and current Hall of Famers at the Georgia Freight Depot for the event that marked the start of what could be a transformational weekend.
“It made everything feel a little bit more real,” Brittany Bowlen said. “It was really exciting and to see all the other incredible finalists, it was just incredible to hear about their careers, meet their families and know that my father could still be in the same class as them. It was really exciting and truly an honor.”
Bowlen Wallace, who called the evening “surreal,” said she thinks her father would’ve spent the weekend honoring those around him even as he stands on the doorstep of the Hall of Fame.
“I think he would be very shy,” Bowlen Wallace said. “He did not like a lot of the attention pointed toward him. I have no doubt that he would be giving a lot of credit to the people around him that helped him achieve this honor and get to where he is today as an owner. There were a lot of people that have played a significant role in making him successful as an owner, and I think he would most want to reflect on that.
“It was never about him, but I know our family thinks this moment is truly all about him, and that makes us extremely proud.”
But as Brittany mentioned Thursday, Bowlen’s election would mean the most to him if he could go into the Hall of Fame alongside a player like Bailey.
“It’d mean everything [to be elected],” Bailey said. “It’s a good reflection of what I’ve done. Obviously I don’t vote. I don’t have any control over anything going over, but if I’m in, it validates what I did in my career and I’d be extremely proud.”
That news, though, will not come until Saturday afternoon when each finalist awaits a knock on the door from Baker.
Before that moment, there will be more opportunities to honor the careers of Bailey, Bowlen, Lynch and Atwater. The Celebration of Excellence, which brought together many of the Broncos’ finalists, was just the start.
“I just really want to enjoy the process,” Bailey said. “I get to see a lot of guys I played with [and] against and just enjoy the moment. I’m just soaking it up and [letting] the process play out.”
