New Orleans Saints Players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame

On July 29, 1995, an illustrious career as a football administrator was capped when Jim Finks was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Finks' posthumous election to the Hall was the ultimate honor in a career full of significant accomplishments.

Finks was named president/general manager of the Saints on Jan. 14, 1986 by owner Tom Benson. As Benson's first major hire since purchasing the team in 1985, Finks brought with him a portfolio of success as a player, coach, scout and administrator that had spanned 37 years in sports.

Much like his prior stints as general manager with the Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears, Finks' final stop would also be a success. Hiring head coach Jim Mora and selecting impact players such as Jim Dombrowski, Dalton Hilliard, Rueben Mayes and Pat Swilling in his first draft, a franchise that had not achieved a winning season in 20 years posted a 12-3 record in 1987, second-best in the NFL, and advanced to its first-ever playoff game. Finks' presence was apparent and recognized as he was named The Sporting News NFL Executive of the Year.

Under Finks' leadership, the Saints continued their rise, winning their first division title in 1991 as the NFC West championship flag flew in New Orleans for the first time. Shortly after his final draft in 1993, which produced future Pro Football Hall of Fame tackle Willie Roaf, Finks was forced to resign following a valiant battle with lung cancer. He passed away on May 8, 1994. From 1986–92, the Saints won 60 percent of their regular-season games and recorded six consecutive non-losing seasons, a feat matched by only two other NFL teams during that span.

Prior to arriving in New Orleans, Finks served as general manager of the Chicago Bears from 1974–83, constructing one of the most dominant teams in NFL history. He acquired 19 of the 22 starters for the Bears team that went 15-1 in 1985 and defeated New England in Super Bowl XX. During his 10-year tenure with the Minnesota Vikings, Finks hired then-unknown Bud Grant as head coach, leading to five NFC Central titles and two Super Bowl appearances.

A native of Salem, Illinois, Finks played quarterback at Tulsa University and was selected in the 12th round of the 1949 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He transitioned to defensive back before becoming the Steelers' starting quarterback in 1952 and earning a Pro Bowl selection. After retiring following the 1955 season, Finks served as an assistant coach before beginning his administrative career as general manager of the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League in 1958.

One of the most productive linebackers in NFL history, Rickey Jackson served as the linchpin of one of the league's most dominant linebacker corps. He became the first player to spend the majority of his career with New Orleans to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

A native of Pahokee, Florida, Jackson starred at the University of Pittsburgh before being selected by the Saints in the second round (51st overall) of the 1981 NFL Draft. He appeared in 227 regular-season games, starting 225 across 15 NFL seasons, including 13 with New Orleans. Jackson missed just two games out of a possible 229 during his career.

With 115 sacks as a Saint, Jackson stood as the franchise's all-time sack leader until the end of the 2022 season and led the team in sacks six times. He finished his career with 128 sacks, ranking tenth all-time in NFL history, with his eight sacks as a rookie in 1981 excluded since sacks were not an official statistic until 1982. He also remains the Saints' all-time leader in fumble recoveries with 26.

In recognition of his dominant pass-rushing ability and sideline-to-sideline play, Jackson was selected to six Pro Bowls (1983–86, 1992–93), tied for the third-most in franchise history, and earned six All-Pro honors (1984–87, 1992–93). After the Saints failed to post a winning record in their first 18 seasons, Jackson helped lead the team to seven consecutive non-losing seasons from 1987–93, including four playoff appearances.

Jackson finished his playing career with San Francisco from 1994–95, earning a Super Bowl XXIX championship ring, before retiring as a Saint in 1996. He was inducted into the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame in 1997, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1999, the Saints Ring of Honor in 2013, and was named to the franchise's All-50th Team in 2016.

One of the most accomplished tackles in National Football League history, William Roaf was the anchor of the Saints offensive line for nine seasons. Coming out of Louisiana Tech in 1993, Roaf was picked by the Saints with the eighth overall choice in the 1993 NFL Draft.

The Pine Bluff, Ark. native was immediately inserted by head coach Jim Mora into the starting lineup at right tackle, where he would start every contest and was selected to several All-Rookie teams. The 6-5, 312-pounder moved to the left side in his second season where he was named a Pro Bowl starter and Associated Press first-team All-Pro, which would begin a 12-year stretch as one of the most dominant left tackles in NFL history.

During his nine seasons with the Saints, Roaf was named to the Pro Bowl seven consecutive times (1994-2000), the second-most appearances ever by a Saint. Following a trade to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2002, he would be selected four more times, totaling 11 total selections, tied for the most nominations by a tackle in league history with Anthony Munoz and Jonathan Ogden. He also was an eight-time AP All-Pro selection, with four selections from each club. Overall, Roaf started all 189 regular season games and three postseason contests he appeared in for the Saints and Chiefs.

Roaf received one of football's highest honors as he was named to the NFL's All-Decade teams of the 1990's and 2000's, voted on by the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee. He was a first-team selection for the 1990's squad and a second-team choice on the 2000's roster, making him one of only 16 players since the AFL-NFL merger to be named to two All-Decade rosters. Additionally, Roaf was named to the Saints Hall of Fame in 2008 and is a member of the Louisiana and Arkansas Sports Hall of Fames. In 2013, he was inducted into the New Orleans Saints Ring of Honor. In 2014, he was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame and in 2016 was named to the franchise's All-50th team.

One of the most decorated kickers in NFL history, Andersen became only the second exclusive placekicker to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The NFL's all-time scoring leader until the 2018 season played in an NFL-record 382 games during his 25-year career with five teams.

The Copenhagen, Denmark native was a Saints scoring weapon for 13 seasons after being selected by New Orleans in the 1982 NFL Draft in the fourth round (86th overall) out of Michigan State. During his Saints career, Andersen was named to the Pro Bowl four consecutive times and six-times overall (1985-88, 1990,1992) and was named a first team AP All-Pro selection five times (1985-88,1992). He finished his Saints career as the club's all-time leader in scoring with 1,318 points, in field goals made with 302 and 25 consecutive field goals made. Andersen went on to play eight seasons for the Falcons (1995-2000, 2006-07) and became Atlanta's all-time scoring leader, earning Pro Bowl and AP All-Pro selections in 1995. In the 1999 NFC Championship game, he made a game-winning kick in overtime to beat Minnesota 30-27. Andersen spent the 2001 season with the Giants, the 2002-03 campaigns with the Chiefs and the 2004 season with the Vikings.

Andersen's illustrious career would break almost every NFL kicking and scoring record. In his 25 seasons, he became the NFL's all-time leader in scoring with 2,544 points, in games played with 382 appearances, in field goals made with 565, achieved NFL records with 22 seasons with 90+ points and scored in an NFL record 360 straight games. The seven-time Pro Bowler and six-time All-Pro hit 22 game winning kicks in the final two-minutes or less, with seven of them taking place in overtime.

Andersen received one of the greatest honors in football as he was named to the NFL's All Decade teams of the 1980's and 1990's, voted on by the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee. The "Great Dane" was named a first-team selection for both the 1980's team and 1990's roster, making him one of only 16 players since the AFL-NFL merger to be named to two All Decade teams. Andersen is a member of the Saints Hall of Fame (2009), the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame (2011), the Saints Ring of Honor (2015) and the club's All50th team (2016).

Mills became the fourth player that spent the majority of his career with the New Orleans Saints to be elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, when he was posthumously selected in 2022.

Mills, 5-9, 232, who passed away in 2005 after a valiant battle with cancer, joined the Saints in 1986, signing with the team after starting his pro football career in the USFL with the Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars (1983-85). The former Montclair State (N.Y.) standout spent nine seasons (1986-94) with New Orleans, a time when he was a sparkplug for one of the NFL's most dominant defenses during the majority of his tenure with the Saints.

The New Jersey native played in 133 games with 125 starts during his Saints tenure and recorded 934 career tackles (723 solo), ranked second in club history to Rickey Jackson, 10.5 sacks, four interceptions, 27 passes defensed, 16 forced fumbles and 17 fumble recoveries, including two recovered for a touchdown. Mills led New Orleans in tackles in five of his nine (1989-92 and 1994) seasons and reached the century mark five times (1988, 1990-92 and 1994), tied for second in club history. During his tenure, the Saints were ranked in the top four in the NFL in opponent net yards per game three times (1987, 1991-92) and in scoring defense three times (1988, 1991-92), including ranking first in both 1991 and 1992. In four postseason contests, he also added 35 tackles (27 solo) and one sack.

Mills earned accolade after accolade during his playing years with the Saints, being selected to the Pro Bowl four times (1987-88 and 1991-92) and as a consensus All-Pro twice (1991-92). Mills was selected to the Saints Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 2001 and posthumously the club's All-50th Team (2016) and Ring of Honor (2021).

Following the conclusion of his Saints career in 1994, Mills played three more seasons for the Carolina Panthers from 1995-97, producing 331 tackles, ten sacks and seven interceptions, summing up his career totals to 1,265 stops, 20.5 quarterback takedowns and 11 interceptions. He was selected to his fifth Pro Bowl in 1996 and also as an Associated Press All-Pro for the third time.

Mills was one of the club's most active players in the community throughout his tenure, having been selected as the Saints recipient of the Byron "Whizzer" White Humanitarian Award in 1992 and 1993.