Read the debate intro and Sports Geek’s argument that there should be a minimum number of years that an athlete plays for a team before that team can retire the player’s number.
There are many different awards designed around recognizing an athlete’s performance during a season. There are League MVP awards, All Star selections, awards for being the best in a position, scoring awards; the list goes on and on. There are only two awards dedicated to honoring a player’s legacy, though. Those awards are induction into a Hall of Fame, and having a jersey/number retired.
Induction into a Hall of Fame generally comes as acknowledgement for a player’s contribution to an entire league. Whether that player achieved monumental statistical results or was instrumental in winning multiple championships the player is recognized by a league as one of the all-time greatest players. It is the highest honor paid to a player for a career.
Similarly, different organizations within a league have the opportunity to recognize players who have made a truly meaningful impact to the team. Whether a contribution was so great that it also earned the player a Hall of Fame induction or not, the team can take measures to honor the player in their own way, by retiring that player’s number.
What makes the honor of having a number retired so special is that the contributions being recognized are as unique as the teams. Every different organization in every different sport has its own history and tradition. With each tradition comes an equally unique set of values. Whether discussing the formation of the team, the accomplishments of the team, or the players that have shaped the team’s legacy, each franchise is unique and must be treated as such. To hold the Tampa Bay Rays accountable to the same standards as the New York Yankees in terms of measuring and recognizing team contribution is like holding a Honda Civic to the same standards as a Rolls Royce. Both are cars, and both get you from one place to the other, but the similarities stop there. Each is prized for different reasons, just as each is criticized for different reasons. What may be considered a monumental accomplishment by one group could be viewed as a pedestrian, every-day occurrence by the other.
Each accomplishment must therefore be viewed in terms of the context surrounding it. If a player spends only three years with a team, but in those three years accomplished remarkable things which benefitted the team greatly, the team absolutely deserves the ability to recognize that player by retiring their number.
Consider Terrell Davis, the former running back of the Denver Broncos. For the Broncos, an organization that proudly claims legendary players such as Hall of Famers John Elway and Gary Zimmerman, Terrell Davis’ time in Denver was very brief. His career, cut short by a series of injuries, was comprised of only four full seasons in the Mile High City, with an additional three years spent primarily on the Injured Reserve list. The fact that Davis only had four meaningful seasons with the Broncos, though, does not diminish the impact that he had while playing on the team.
With regard to his individual accomplishments, Davis was the most dominant running back in the NFL when he was healthy. During his four seasons as the Denver Broncos’ primary rusher, Davis ran for a total of 6,413 yards and 56 touchdowns. In 1998, Davis became only the fourth (at that time) running back in NFL history to gain more than 2,000 rushing yards in a single season, reaching 2,008 total yards gained. That year he also rushed for 21 touchdowns, which at the time was the third highest single-season total in league history. During the four years from 1995 to 1999, Davis was named the AP Offensive Player of the Year twice (1996 and 1998), and was named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player in 1998 by both the Associated Press and the Pro Football Writers Association. He was also named to the Pro Bowl in three of the four seasons (1996, 1997, and 1998).
As far as team contributions are concerned, he led the Broncos to its first Super Bowl championship in franchise history and a repeat one year later (the only two championships ever won by the team). His performance against the Green Bay Packers in the 1997 Super Bowl was good enough to win him the Super Bowl MVP award.
Although his career was packed into a very short period that only included four meaningful years, his contribution to the Broncos puts him in exactly the same class as the aforementioned John Elway, who played for 15 seasons with Denver. Is it fair to deny the Denver Broncos and their fans the privilege of recognizing and thanking Terrell Davis for his truly remarkable contributions to the team, just because he did not play for ten years on the Broncos?
It should not matter how many years the player wore that team’s uniform. If the team feels that the player’s accomplishments were so great that they are worthy of recognition, then that team deserves the opportunity to retire the player’s number.
