The Washington Football Team has finally decided to retire jersey No. 21 in honor of the legendary Sean Taylor.
The decision itself is a no-brainer by the Washington organization. But fans aren’t happy with several components of the announcement.
First off, Washington should have done this years ago. There was no reason to wait as long as the organization did. Second, instead of holding the jersey retirement a month or two from now to prepare fans, Washington is doing it this Sunday. Talk about a rushed decision.
In the wake of heavy pushback surrounding the details of the announcement, Washington released a statement in response to the fans.
“We apologize to fans who would have liked more notice and will continue to share with fans ways we will be celebrating Sean Taylor’s legacy over the next month,” the organization announced.
Statement from a Washington spokesperson: “We apologize to fans who would have liked more notice and will continue to share with fans ways we will be celebrating Sean Taylor’s legacy over the next month.”
Team had been planning Taylor tribute for months, per spokesperson.
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 14, 2021
Washington can’t do many things right these days. But at least the organization is finally retiring Sean Taylor’s jersey number.
Here’s what the Washington Football Team had to say about Sunday’s upcoming ceremony, via WashingtonFootball.com:
During the Washington Football Team’s October 17th matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs, the team will honor nearly 100 alumni at FedExField, while also paying a special tribute to Washington alumnus and football legend, Sean Taylor. Taylor’s family will join the team on-field for a pre-game ceremony in which Taylor’s contributions to the team will be remembered alongside the retirement of his jersey number, 21. This will mark only the third time in the team’s 89-year history that a jersey number will be officially retired.
It will be a special scene when Taylor’s jersey and number is retired this Sunday. But there’s no doubt it’s a bit disappointing Washington waited so long to announce the ceremony.
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