The Steelers should ensure they do not make the same mistake with Terry Bradshaw that they did with Franco Harris. They waited too long to retire his jersey, and tragically, he died just before his formal ceremony. That they had to hold it posthumously with his family in attendance was an emotional gut punch. One might think the experience was a wake-up call, but it doesn’t seem to have been.
Asked if there is any inside information about the Steelers’ plans to retire Terry Bradshaw’s jersey, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said, “I don’t think it’s happening anytime soon.” Previously, Dulac expressed his personal opinion that it would be a shame for the organization if they waited too long.
Of course, at the same time that he said that, Dulac also said he believes they will do it. He didn’t say when he thinks they might. But Bradshaw is now 76 years old and has had some health issues in recent years. In February, he announced his plans to retire from Fox NFL Sunday, citing those health issues as a contributing factor.
To date, the Steelers have officially retired only three jerseys. For many years, the only retired jersey was that #70 belonging to the great Ernie Stautner of the pre-dynasty era. They didn’t retire Joe Greene’s number until 2014. It took them another eight years to retire Franco Harris’ number in 2022. Already three years later, there is no word on Bradshaw.
While NFL teams can only retire so many numbers due to the size of rosters, there is room for more. According to Wikipedia, at least, there are 163 retired jerseys around the NFL. The Chicago Bears and New York Giants have each retired 14. Having just three retired jerseys is somewhat remarkable for an organization with as much history as the Steelers.
Even as high as the Steelers’ standard for retirement might be, Terry Bradshaw unequivocally qualifies. He is a four-time Super Bowl champion quarterback and the organization’s only ever NFL MVP. While he took some years to develop, in the latter half of his career, he was among the best in the game.
Even though the Steelers are very judicious with retiring jerseys, they “unofficially” retire many numbers by not assigning them to players. Nobody has worn Bradshaw’s #12 since he retired, for example. Other unofficially “retired” numbers include #86 (Hines Ward), #63 (Dermontti Dawson), #59 (Jack Ham), #58 (Jack Lambert), #52 (Mike Webster), #43 (Troy Polamalu), #36 (Jerome Bettis), #47 (Mel Blount), and #62 (Daniel McCullers [this is a joke, but they haven’t issued it since 2016 to Johnny Maxey. In actuality, it’s likely a tribute to Tunch Ilkin]).
I shared my opinion three years ago that the Steelers must retire Bradshaw’s number in the near future. If they were willing to do it for Joe Greene and Franco Harris, Terry Bradshaw has to follow. And why wait until he is no longer with us? If retiring a player’s jersey means something, then do it while the player is alive.
