Green Bay Packers coach and Super Bowl winner Mike Holmgren was named a coaching finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 2025 class on Tuesday.

In the senior category, former Packers wide receiver Sterling Sharpe; Maxie Baughan, a linebacker who was selected to the Pro Bowl nine times for the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Rams in the 1960s; and Jim Tyrer, the Kansas City Chiefs’ gigantic offensive tackle in the 1960s and 1970s, were named finalists.

Tyrer’s selection is controversial since he died in a murder-suicide involving his wife in 1980, but senior committee voters and his family members publicly advocated for his inclusion.

In the contributor category, the finalist, as ESPN first reported last month, is NFL co-founder Ralph Hay, owner of the Canton Bulldogs from 1918 to 1922. He is being recognized for organizing the first meeting of the teams that formed the American Professional Football Association founded , the forerunner of the NFL.

Robert Kraft, the owner of the New England Patriots, whose teams have won six Super Bowls, was rejected for the 13th time by the nine voters on the Contributors Committee.

Holmgren and coach Mike Shanahan were considered the two likeliest favorites in the coaching category this year. From 1992 to 1998, Holmgren coached the Packers and led the team to six playoff appearances, three NFC Central titles and two NFC Championship Games. In two Super Bowls with the Packers, Holmgren led the Packers to a victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI in New Orleans, but lost Super Bowl XXXII to the Denver Broncos in San Diego.

As coach of the Seattle Seahawks from 1999 to 2008, he led the franchise to six postseason appearances and one NFC Championship game. In Super Bowl XL, his Seahawks lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Sharpe had a short but productive career for the Packers from 1988 to 1994. His best season was 1992, when he became the sixth player to win the receiving Triple Crown and set an NFL record with 108 catches for 1,461 yards and 13 touchdowns. He broke his own record with 112 catches in 1993 and led the NFL with 18 touchdown receptions in his final season (1994) before a neck injury cut his career short.

Sharpe and Baughan were never finalists during their time in the Modern Era category.

The five finalists will be voted on by the full committee of 50 Hall of Fame voters early next year. 80 percent of the votes are needed to convene the meeting. Of the five finalists, a maximum of three will be inducted, according to new rules set this year by the board of directors of the Canton, Ohio-based Hall. If none of the five finalists reach the 80 percent hurdle, only the top voter would be elected.

The selection committee will vote separately on 15 modern-era finalists, with the 2025 inductees to be announced during Super Bowl week in New Orleans in February.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.