The Super Bowl is less than a week away and the NFL will soon be announcing the modern-era finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Ahead of the long-awaited announcement, Ray Lewis explains why Alan Faneca of the Pittsburgh Steelers belongs in the Hall of Fame.

https://twitter.com/steelers/status/1222282704319705088?s=20

Faneca was drafted by the Steelers in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft out of LSU. The legendary guard would spend 10 seasons in Pittsburgh. In addition, he was a nine-time Pro Bowler, six-time All-Pro, and helped the Steelers win a Super Bowl in 2005.

Of course, Lewis was a Hall of Fame linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens from 1996-2012. Therefore, Lewis faced Faneca twice a year for the majority of his career and knows how dominant he once was.

Over his career, Faneca was the ultimate iron man in the NFL along the offensive line. The tough-nosed offensive guard missed only two games in his entire career in the league. That is mighty impressive at a position that is constantly taking punishment at the line of scrimmage.

At 6-foot-5, Faneca would tower over some of the smaller defenders and bulldoze holes for Jerome Bettis and Willie Parker. Now, he could find himself enshrined in Canton with Bettis and other players in Pittsburgh's storied franchise.

Besides Faneca, Troy Polamalu is another former player from the Steelers that cracked the 15 finalists list for the Hall of Fame. It would be quite an accomplishment for both Faneca and Polamalu to receive gold jackets in the same year. Of all of the players that could endorse Faneca, Lewis advocating for him holds some weight.

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