Mawae and Thomas faced each other for the first time in 1996 when Mawae was in his third of four seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, 14 times when Mawae was with the Jets, and one final time in 2006 when Mawae was in his first of four seasons with the Tennessee Titans.

"Zach Thomas was my nemesis," Mawae said about three-quarters into his 27-minute Hall of Fame speech. "My first year with the Jets before my first game we played against each other, (Coach) Bill Parcells told me in front of my entire team, 'If you don't block Thomas, we won't win the game,' and for the next 16 matchups I never forgot that.