Most offensive guards don’t make the Pro Football Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility, but it does happen. Bruce Matthews and guard/tackle Larry Allen are recent examples.

Former Pittsburgh Steelers guard Alan Faneca might be next. He’s not a lock for enshrinement on his first ballot – last year’s inductee, Will Shields, also a guard, entered the Hall in his fourth – but Faneca’s place on the 2000s All-Decade first team speaks loudly come voting time.

He was one of the two best players at his position for a 10-year span. The two quarterbacks with that distinction from the 2000s, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, will be first-ballot Hall of Famers, without question. Why should offensive guard be much different?

Also helping Faneca’s cause is, according to former Steelers coach Bill Cowher, his trendsetting. Cowher told Steelers.com that Faneca “almost redefined” the position because of his ability to win at the line of scrimmage or while blocking in space, paving the way for the zone-blocking schemes popular in today’s game.

Many former NFL defensive linemen who’ve lined up against Faneca say his combination of technique, smarts and toughness made him a brutal matchup on Sundays.

All-Pro appearances matter in the eyes of the selection committee, and Faneca has six of them. At a position judged more by the eye tests than statistics, Faneca has all of the intangibles.

“I prided myself on being a good teammate, being there for the guys, being a good leader, showing guys how it was done the right way,” Faneca said. “I really wanted to pass that along.”

If Faneca doesn’t make the Hall this year, he will eventually. But his first-ballot case is a compelling one.