More than 500 people stood on the Northwest Stadium concourse for one hour on Sunday awaiting Darrell Green. No. 28 was about to be retired by the Washington Commanders and the crowd couldn’t get enough.
I see him as Darrell, someone I’ve known for more than 30 years. The only ex-player’s number in my phone. Someone I talk to occasionally.
But the crowd saw their idol. Not just another member of the great champions teams whose members are filling the stadium’s Ring of Fame, but a legend. One of their favorite players ever.
That crowd made me see retiring numbers differently. It’s the ultimate honor, not a marketing ploy. It shouldn’t be cheapened but coveted.
It’s so easy to say who’s next, but the act isn’t a given. And, it should be given great thought and not a popularity contest.
Sammy Baugh’s No. 33 was once the only number not used since his 1952 retirement. Owner George Preston Marshall promised no player would ever wear it while he was owner, but Marshall died in 1969.
In 1973, running back Duane Thomas asked for the number after wearing it elsewhere. The equipment manager Tommy McVean said no. Thomas asked McVean to call Baugh for permission. Baugh said sure, go ahead. McVean looked at Thomas and said Baugh said no.
If not for McVean, Baugh’s number would have been used. The Commanders should officially retire Baugh’s number for that reason alone. Baugh died in 2008, but his memory should be protected as the team’s greatest player ever and someone who saved the NFL by making the forward pass a staple.
That Sean Taylor’s No. 21 was retired after his 2007 death greatly bothered many former Redskins players. In a word, they were (expletive.) That led to a reconsideration of retiring numbers officially and Bobby Mitchell’s No. 49 was rightfully the first. Mitchell was the team’s first Black player. He was a superstar on and off the field who stayed with the organization for more than 50 years.
Sonny Jurgensen’s No. 9 was next as the best player since Baugh. Unfortunately, Jurgensen was chained to losing teams. Still, Sonny could throw frozen ropes 40 yards behind his back in his 60s. He was that great.
Now Green is the fourth immortal. The number can’t go too much higher, but there are four more players who deserve it.
John Riggins.
Art Monk.
Charley Taylor.
Larry Brown.
Normally, I’d say the player has to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but I’m amending that rule for Brown. He deserves to be enshrined.
Monk (No. 81) is Taylor 2.0. Both retired as the NFL’s leading receiver. I’d choose Taylor (No. 42) first because he was a lifelong Redskin with 13 seasons. Monk spent 14 years in Washington before single seasons with the New York Jets and Philadelphia. Both numbers deserve to be retired.
Before them would be John Riggins, though. Riggo’s touchdown run in Super Bowl XVII was the franchise’s single-most important play of the post-World-War-II era. It led to the three titles under coach Joe Gibbs.
(And for all those who say Gibbs should be retired, he didn’t wear a number. Now if we’re talking statues at the next stadium, then Gibbs is up first.)
Riggo became the team’s all-time leading rusher and certainly its biggest personality. But, No. 44 is second in line because Riggins played five seasons for the New York Jets before coming to Washington.
The No. 1 number that should be retired is No. 43, Larry Brown.
Brown is someone whose Canton enshrinement has slipped through the cracks. The biggest knock was his career wasn’t long enough, but his stats are very similar to 2017 inductee Terrell Davis.
Brown played seven years with two All-Pros, four Pro Bowls and 1972 NFL Most Valuable Player. Davis spent eight seasons in Denver with three All-Pros, three Pro Bowls and – most importantly – two Super Bowl championships. Davis gained 1,800 more yards than Brown, but also played 16-game seasons over Brown’s 14-game schedules.
Canton voters are overlooking Brown, but Washington officials should not. Brown was a legend of the George Allen era. That he’s 77 years old speaks to the oldest fans who remember RFK intimately. They should not be shouted down by younger fans of the Gibbs era.
There are only a handful of players still deserving of this honor. Nobody of this century even begins to earn a discussion. Washington officials should pick one annually and not do it as a group that would diminish the accolade.
But if we’re planning ahead, Brown leads the line.