Reggie White, Troy Aikman top list of finalists

The 15 finalists also include Thurman Thomas and Warren Moon.
CANTON (AP) -- Two of the most dominant players on either side of the ball during the 1990s could be entering the Pro Football Hall of Fame together.
Troy Aikman and the late Reggie White were among the 15 finalists announced Wednesday for the Hall of Fame, joining Thurman Thomas and Warren Moon as finalists in their first year of eligibility.
Three to six of the finalists will be selected for the class of 2006, which will be announced Feb. 4, the day before the Super Bowl in Detroit. Enshrinement of the class will be the weekend of Aug. 5-6.
Aikman quarterbacked Dallas to three Super Bowl titles between the 1992-1995 seasons. He was one of the league's most accurate passers and his 90 wins in the '90s make him the winningest starting quarterback of any decade.
White, who died on Dec. 26, 2004, went to two Super Bowls with Green Bay and was elected to 13 straight Pro Bowls as a member of the Packers and Eagles. The defensive lineman is second on the all-time sacks list with 198 and led the league twice in the category, including 1987 when he had 21.
Thomas was a star running back on the Buffalo team that won four straight AFC titles from 1990-93. Moon threw for nearly 50,000 yards in the NFL after starting his career in the Canadian Football League.
Two senior candidates
The two seniors candidates, former Dallas offensive tackle Rayfield Wright and former Oakland coach and current broadcaster John Madden, were chosen by a special committee last August and went straight to the finals. The other 13 finalists were selected from a list of 25 semifinalists.
Madden, known as much for his video game and commentating as his coaching, has been eligible for the Hall of Fame for 27 years.
Other finalists
The other finalists are: Derrick Thomas, the Kansas City linebacker who died in 2000 after a car accident; linebacker Harry Carson, who played for the New York Giants and was a member of the 1987 Super Bowl champions; defensive end L.C. Greenwood, a member of Pittsburgh's "Steel Curtain" teams of the 1970s; defensive end Claude Humphrey, who played for Atlanta and Philadelphia between 1968-81; Russ Grimm, a member of Washington's famed "Hogs" offensive line; Bob Kuechenberg, an offensive lineman on Miami's 1972 undefeated Super Bowl champions; Minnesota and Denver tackle Gary Zimmerman who played from 1986-1997; wide receiver Michael Irvin, a member of the Dallas teams that won three Super Bowls between 1992 and 1995, and wide receiver Art Monk, a member of three Super Bowl winners with Washington.
A 39-member panel will vote on the finalists. A candidate must get 80 percent of the vote to be elected. If fewer than three get 80 percent, the candidate with the next highest percentage will be elected.