Marshawn Lynch took to Twitter and officially announced his retirement in a way that only he could. Always a man of few words, especially when it came to the media, Lynch simply shared a photo of his neon-green cleats hanging from some power lines, leaving a peace sign in the caption. Many speculated that this was the end, and on Monday, Lynch’s agent confirmed that Lynch does intend to retire.

His retirement beg’s the question: Is Marshawn Lynch headed to the NFL Hall of Fame?

Anybody who has watched him as closely as Seattle fans have over the last six seasons will answer with a resounding yes, but what about everyone else? Well, like Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman has said so many times, “Numbers don’t lie.”

So let’s look at the numbers. Over his career, Lynch has amassed 9,112 yards on 2,144 carries—an average of 4.3 yards per carry—with 74 touchdowns. In the postseason, Lynch is third all time with six 100-yard rushing games, second to only Terell Davis and Emmitt Smith. Lynch has amassed 917 rushing yards and 9 touchdowns, the most among all active NFL running backs.

While hitting the 10,000 yard mark on his career or winning a second Super Bowl would have all but guaranteed Lynch a spot in the Hall of Fame, something else should be considered. Lynch would seemingly gain momentum as the game progressed, grinding out yards and wearing the opposing defenders down. Lynch was arguably the hardest runner the NFL has seen over the last 10 years. Go back and watch some tape. His greatest run, and perhaps one of the greatest runs of all time, came in 2010 against the then defending champion New Orleans Saints. Lynch took what should have been a 2-yard run and turned it into a 67-yard rumble, breaking at least six tackles along the way. Lynch changed the way we look at running backs in the NFL.

“I know I’m gonna get got. But I’m gonna get mine before I get got, though.”
Thanks for everything Beast. See you in the Hall.