It was a long wait, but former Green Bay Packers linebacker Dave Robinson is finally a Hall of Famer.
Robinson, who was a senior committee nominee, joins Cowboys tackle Larry Allen; Eagles and Vikings receiver Cris Carter; Giants, Patriots and Cowboys coach Bill Parcells; Ravens tackle Jonathan Ogden; Buccaneers and Raiders defensive tackle Warren Sapp; and Chiefs, Oilers and Lions defensive lineman Curly Culp, the second senior committee nominee, in the class of 2013.
Robinson was the Packers first-round selection in 1963 and played in Green Bay until 1972. He played his final two seasons with Washington.
During Robinson’s Packers tenure, he was a three-time Pro Bowler and a first-team All Pro in 1967. Robinson is also a member of the NFL’s All-Decade team of the 1960s and a three-time NFL champion.
He’ll join the guy he played alongside of in Green Bay — Ray Nitschke — in the Hall of Fame. Those two, along with Lee Roy Caffey formed one of the greatest linebacking corps in NFL history.
Ironically, a lot of people believe that’s what kept Robinson out of the Hall of Fame for so many years. Not only was he surrounded by great players on those Vince Lombardi-coached teams and often overshadowed by Nitschke, but there’s a perceived Packers fatigue among Hall of Fame voters.
Ten players from those Lombardi teams are already in the Hall of Fame. Robinson makes it 11 and deservedly so.