Patrick Peterson backtracks jersey number demand in Pittsburgh
Patrick Peterson has spent nearly his entire career as a lockdown corner, but this week, he was the one getting shut down by Steelers fans.
The eight-time Pro Bowler wore No. 7 with the Vikings the past two seasons and had plans of retaining it in Pittsburgh. On Monday, it was reported Peterson will sign with the Steelers once the league year begins March 15.
But Peterson's uniform plan hit a snag after fans reminded him that No. 7 was the number of retired Steelers Super Bowl-winning QB Ben Roethlisberger.
If the Steelers were to make all jersey numbers of their Super Bowl contributors off-limits, the team would need to switch to hieroglyphics.
Only three numbers are officially retired by the organization: Ernie Stautner's No. 70, Joe Greene's No. 75 and most recently the No. 32 worn by Franco Harris. But that doesn't come close to covering all of the sacred numbers in Steelers history.
The others include Terry Bradshaw's No. 12, Troy Polamalu's No. 43, Jack Lambert's No. 58 and Hines Ward's No. 86. Those numbers have yet to be reissued since those Pittsburgh legends retired.
And then there are No. 36 (Jerome Bettis), No. 47 (Mel Blount), No. 52 (Mike Webster), No. 59 (Jack Ham) and No. 68 LC Greenwood), which have been used sparingly in the years since those players retired, per Pro Football Reference.
It didn't take long for Peterson to find a new home, but it's going to take him a little longer to find a new number.
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