Ken Riley, who starred at Florida A&M and was an excellent defensive back in the NFL, is just one more snap from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Riley, who died in 2020, on Wednesday was one of the three senior nominees named finalists for the Hall.
“He’s almost home,” Ken Riley II told the Cincinnati Bengals website. “I’m just so grateful for all the support from Cincinnati and the greatest fans in the world. We’ve been waiting 39 years and I would tell him, ‘Your time will come.'”
Riley, who played quarterback at FAMU and was later drafted by the Bengals in the sixth round as a defensive back, was inducted into the Black College Football Hall of Fame in 2015.
During his NFL career, Riley was named All-Pro four times and retired with fourth most career interceptions, with 65 in 14 seasons.
“This is long deserved. It is unfortunate Kenny is gone because we know how much he would have appreciated this,” Bengals president Mike Brown said in a statement. “His family is surely pleased at this news. Kenny was a splendid player and still holds the Bengals record for most interceptions over a career. It would be a wonderful thing if he were selected for the Hall of Fame.”
