Former Baltimore Colts RB Tom Matte

( Gene Sweeney Jr. / The Baltimore Sun / September 6, 2012 )

"He was a special guy to me. I call him a very close friend. We came into the league together in 1961. What he's done for football can't be measured. This man deserves to be in the Hall of Fame." -- Tom Matte

Former Browns G John Wooten

"First and foremost, our relationship goes back to the 1960s when he first bought the Cleveland Browns. He was one of the great, great owners in the NFL. He was a man that sacrificed and did the things to make the NFL what it is today. He was an owner who excelled in dealing with players, working with the public and making sure that our game was growing. He sacrificed.

"He worked alongside Lamar Hunt, Tex Schramm, Well Mara and Art Rooney -- and all of those men are in the Hall of Fame. He worked with them in all of those meetings. He was there. It is indeed a shame that he is not in the Hall of Fame.

"I can't tell you how bad I want Art to be in the Hall of Fame." -- John Wooten