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What: “Stories From the Hall of Fame: Pro Football”

Where: The History Channel, tonight, 10.

A football show on the History Channel needs to appeal to an audience of more than just sports fans. Maybe that explains why NFL Films would select O.J. Simpson as one of the five Pro Football Hall of Famers it profiles in this one-hour special. You don’t have to be a sports fan to know who Simpson is.

But putting a segment on Simpson in the middle of a show that profiles four other Hall of Famers--Y.A. Tittle, Red Grange, Marv Levy and Lynn Swann, all quality people--can’t be justified. NFL Films had 211 Hall of Fame members to chose from.

The inclusion of Simpson detracts from an otherwise fine show. At least it’s questioned whether Simpson still belongs in the Hall of Fame. Take away the Simpson segment and the show, with Howie Long serving as host, is typical NFL Films quality.

The show opens with Tittle, who played 17 seasons in the NFL, passed for more than 33,000 yards and passed for a then-record 36 touchdowns in 1963. But he may be remembered best for the 1964 photograph of him that is on display at the Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Coincidentally, the photo, showing Tittle battered, beaten and kneeling in the end zone after throwing an interception, also was featured in a documentary on HBO Monday night.

Grange’s pro career was hampered because of a knee injury, but he was the first big-name college player to sign with an NFL team. Levy is always a fascinating subject, and the segment on Swann is very moving. No one could have expressed how much being enshrined into the Hall of Fame means better than Swann did at his induction last year.