Congratulations to the new group entering the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024 — Dwight Freeney, Devin Hester, Andre Johnson, Julius Peppers, Patrick Willis, Randy Gradishar and Steve McMichael. All studs, all deserving.

But there a bunch of other former NFL stars that time — and the voters — have left behind, up to now. For various reasons that haven’t been specified, these warriors of the gridiron don’t yet have their busts at Canton. Will they ever?

Here’s our list, listed in no particular order:

Jim Plunkett

Sure, his overall stats weren’t great, and his TD-to-INT ratio was terrible: 164 to 198. He had a regular season record of 72-72 and his QB rating was a mediocre 67.5. For years, he didn’t live up his billing as a former Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 overall draft pick in 1971.

BUT … Plunkett played for some of the worst teams of the 1970s, the way-before-Tom-Brady New England Patriots and the pre-Joe-Montana San Francisco 49ers. He then went to the Raiders, compiling a 27-12 regular season record and winning two Super Bowls. He is the only quarterback in history to have won two titles and not be voted into the Hall of Fame.

Roger Craig

This one’s really hard to fathom. The high-stepping dynamo was the first RB in NFL history to gain at least 1,000 yards both rushing and receiving (in 1985) and helped the 49ers win three Super Bowls. In 1985, Craig led the league in receptions with 92 to go along with 214 carries. He won Offensive Player of the Year in 1988.

Phil Simms

The longtime broadcaster was never a flashy QB, but he was one of the best big-game signal-callers ever. He still owns the highest completion percentage with 88 percent (22 for 25) in the Giants’ 39-20 blowout of the Broncos in 1987. Had he not gotten injured in the 1990 season, he might have won his second title.

Moreover, no shade to guys like Ken Stabler nor Joe Namath, but those guys didn’t accomplish a lot more than Simms did. Unfortunately for Simms, he wasn’t the most important player on the Giants — that distinction went to linebacker Lawrence Taylor, who some believe is the greatest defensive player in NFL history.

Hines Ward

There was never a tougher wide receiver in the league. He helped lead the Steelers to three Super Bowls in six years, winning two of them. He topped 1,000 yards four straight seasons and six overall. He is 28th all-time in receiving yards.

Lester Hayes

Lester ‘The Molester’, together with Mike Haynes on the Raiders, formed arguably the greatest cornerback tandem in NFL history. Hayes played more like a linebacker but also had insane coverage abilities. It’s hard to fathom now, with NFL rules giving so much leeway to passing attacks, but Hayes was one of those rare game-changing DBs who opposing teams feared. In the Raiders’ Super Bowl season of 1980, Hayes snared a stunning 13 INTs and returned them for 273 yards in total. He also had five picks during the playoffs that season.

Clay Matthews Jr.

Playing in the hinterlands of Cleveland didn’t help this linebacker’s national recognition, but few played the position better. The 12th overall draft pick in 1978 was a 4-time Pro Bowl selection, led the league in combined tackles four times and also led the league in forced fumbles in 1983.

Matthews was the cornerstone of the Browns’ defense and helped lead the team to seven playoffs, five of which unfortunately ended with one-score heartbreakers.

Joe Jacoby

The longtime Redskins’ offensive tackle was one of the original members of the ‘Hogs,’ a group of five very large and very good offensive linemen that spearheaded three Washington titles in 10 years and a fourth Super Bowl that was a defeat. This group — consisting of Jacoby, Jeff Bostic, Mark May, George Starke and Russ Grimm — is considered one of the best O-lines of all time.

Jacoby was the lead blocker on John Riggins’ 43-yard touchdown run that sealed the 1983 Super Bowl victory over the Dolphins. He and the Hogs paved the way for 276 yards rushing vs the Dolphins and 280 in the 1988 Super Bowl win over the Broncos.

Jim Marshall

The former Vikings defensive end was one of the greatest ever, but he’s perhaps most known for running the wrong way with an opponent’s fumble. But that was one of a still-NFL-record 29 fumbles recovered, and Marshall also holds the record for a astounding 279 straight games started by a defensive player.

Marshall was one of the Vikings’ ‘Purple People Eaters’ — a defensive front four that also included Hall of Famer Alan Page, Carl Eller, Gary Larsen and Doug Sutherland. This group ate offenses alive and led Minnesota to four Super Bowls in a span of eight seasons, all one-sided defeats.