When the NFL changed its rules on jersey numbers, it allowed certain positional players to have jersey numbers that they might not have been able to wear in years past. Had Darnell Washington landed with any other team, he might have gotten his college number 0. However, with the Pittsburgh Steelers, that’s not the case.
Darnell Washington was not the only player that learned this lesson quickly. Patrick Peterson wanted to continue on with his Vikings jersey number 7. That was rejected faster than Wilt Chamberlain blocked shots in the NBA. Probably cause some little-known quarterback wore the number. A Steelers player named Ben Roethlisberger. Yes, I also had to look him up in the Steelers media guide too.
All kidding aside, the Steelers, if anything else, take tradition seriously, and that extends to their jersey numbers. The Steelers only have three jersey numbers officially retired. Ernie Stautner’s number 70, Joe Greene’s number 75, and Franco Harris’s number 32. No other player will ever wear those jerseys again. However, some numbers are unofficially retired.
The Jerseys, while not retired but out of circulation, include Johnny Clement’s 0, Terry Bradshaw’s 12, Jerome Bettis’s #36, Troy Polamalu’s #43, Mel Blount’s #47 has been used, but sparingly it has been used 4 times in 1985,1987, 1999-2000, and 2006. Ryan Shazier's #50, Mike Webster’s #52, Jack Lambert’s #58, Jack Ham’s #59, Dermontti Dawson’s (including Enrie Holmes) #63, and Hines Ward’s #86. Thus these numbers will not be included in the article to their status.
While some players are that great, their Jersey number will always be associated with them; for others, it’s generational. Fans old enough to remember players from years past may associate a jersey with a specific player, while younger fans associate it with a more modern player. However, some jerseys are not associated with anyone, and that’s even true with the Steelers.
So let’s take a look at the Steelers jersey numbers and which players are remembered for. There are also a few interesting jersey numbers which it is associated with two NFL superstars that played for the Steelers.