As the team searched for Cowher's replacement following his retirement after the 2006 season, they settled on Tomlin, an energetic 34-year-old largely unknown defensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings. Over the last decade
"The National Football League, the game is your legacy," Rooney said during his Hall of Fame speech. "Protect it. Don't let anyone tarnish it."
"He shaped the league with instincts, wisdom and a soft-spoken velvet touch," Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. "He was a steward and a guardian for the growth and popularity of the NFL,Nike Air Max 98 Og, because he loved the game so much."
Then-Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and league lawyers recognized the need for a hiring policy that was fair and transparent; the NFL had many critics over the lack of minorities in high-profile jobs, particularly as head coaches.
Rooney was such a fixture in the Steel City that he regularly walked to home games. He mingled with fans, much as his father did before him, and made his players feel supremely comfortable in his presence. He would frequently have lunch with members of the staff, players and even the media, stopping to say hello or chat up whomever he came across.
Born July 20, 1932,Wholesale NFL Jerseys, in Pittsburgh, Rooney was a high school quarterback, then attended Duquesne, receiving a degree in accounting. The family business was his calling,Jerseys Wholesale, and he soon became involved in every area of the Steelers.
While Jones likened the Rooneys to NFL royalty, Rooney's personal touch and irrepressible good nature never made it seem that way even as turned the Steelers from also-rans to champions. He watched firsthand as the league his father bought into for $2,500 in 1933 became a multi-billion dollar, year-round business. Yet he never lost sight of its roots and made sure the focus remained on the people and the game itself.
"He's just down to earth, humble, regardless of his stature," said former cornerback Ike Taylor, an African-American who grew up in Louisiana but developed a close bond with Rooney during his 12-year career.
"My job is to do what's best for the organization and to make that decision regardless of what the consequences are to me personally," Dan Rooney once said. "I take my position very seriously. What I want is an organization that can be together, one where everybody in the place has the same goal, and that is to win."
Rooney returned in 2012 and went right back to work in the family business,Wholesale Baseball Jerseys 2018, becoming a fixture at the team's headquarters well into his 80s. He is survived by Patricia, his wife of 65 years, as well as seven children, 20 grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and four brothers.
Add in the likes of Joe Greene, Jack Ham, Jack Lambert, Franco Harris, Mel Blount, John Stallworth, Lynn Swann, L.C. Greenwood and Mike Webster — all draftees. Soon, the Steelers were dominating pro football.
Perhaps Rooney's most lasting contribution to the NFL — and to sports in general — came with the Rooney Rule.
And win the Steelers did. With superb drafts that led to the building of the Steel Curtain defense and a potent offense, Pittsburgh eventually saw nine mainstays from the 1970s dynasty, plus coach Chuck Noll, make the Hall of Fame.
Few in the history of the modern NFL have loomed larger.
Pittsburgh has had a mere three head coaches since '69. Noll won four Super Bowls. Bill Cowher won one and Mike Tomlin has won one. Rooney spearheaded the team's commitment to continuity and stability.
Rooney also served as the U.S. ambassador to Ireland from 2009-2012, becoming the first ambassador from the U.S. to visit each of Ireland's 32 counties.
"My father meant so much to all of us, and so much to so many past and present members of the Steelers organization," Art Rooney II said. "He gave his heart and soul to the Steelers, the National Football League and the city of Pittsburgh. We will celebrate his life and the many ways he left us in a better place."
Rooney took over operation of the team in the 1960s from his father, Art, who founded the franchise. From there, Dan Rooney oversaw NFL championships for a team that had never even played in a league title game. Over the decades he became one of the most powerful and innovative forces within the game, developing the Rooney Rule under which NFL teams are required to interview minority candidates for coaching and front-office positions. He was a key figure in labor negotiations and league expansion.
A confidant of three commissioners, he played a major role in negotiations with the