Jaylon Smith is 54 no more but is it fine for him to rock #9? That has been a hot topic of debate among Cowboys fans leading up to the announcement that Smith will become the first Dallas Cowboys player to wear the #9 since Tony Romo retired in 2017. Most fans don’t really get too worked up about this sort of thing but there are a large contingent of traditionalists as well as Tony Romo apologists that view this move as disrespectful on Jaylon’s part. Should Tony Romo’s number 9 be considered off limits or is it fair game? What do you believe is the right answer? I will tell you what I think at the conclusion of this article but first I am going to answer a number of questions in order to demonstrate how I came to my decision.
ARE ANY NUMBERS SACRED?
There are 53 players on a football roster and only 99 available numbers to choose from. Every year that passes, the selection of unique numbers diminishes. For that reason, NFL teams typically do not retire numbers. Yet, there remains a small collection of numbers that have been retired belonging to the likes of players such as Jim Brown, Joe Montana, and Lawrence Taylor. The Dallas Cowboys are one of the few teams that have not retired any jersey numbers in their 60 year history. Instead, the Dallas Cowboys have created a tradition of legacy numbers such as #88 which was worn by Drew Pearson, Michael Irvin, Dez Bryant, and now CeeDee Lamb. Another example is Jaylon Smith’s previous jersey number (54) which was donned by former Super Bowl MVP Chuck Howley as well as NFL Hall of Famer Randy White. Even with those legacy numbers, there have been some players who have worn them that have failed to represent them well on the field. If players like Antonio Bryant and Bobby Carpenter have not tarnished the great numbers that they wore, it is difficult to imagine Jaylon Smith can damage the reputation of the #9. However, unlike #88 and #54, there is only one player that has represented the #9 so well for the Dallas Cowboys thus far and that has been Tony Romo. To that end, although the Dallas Cowboys have not officially retired any numbers, there does appear to be a handful of numbers that have been unofficially retired for the Dallas Cowboys. I doubt that in my lifetime, I will ever see another Dallas Cowboys player wear the #12 that Roger Staubach wore. What about Bob Lilly‘s #74? Troy Aikman‘s #8? What about #22? Free agent acquisition Keanu Neal who came over from the Atlanta Falcons this offseason decided to switch his #22 out of respect for the All-Time leading rusher Emmitt Smith. Smith has made himself so synonymous with #22 that people often forget he is not the only Dallas Cowboys Hall of Famer who wore that jersey number. Wide receiver “Bullet” Bob Hayes was the original Dallas Cowboys #22. So despite the fact that the Cowboys do not retire numbers and the organisation does encourage the practice of legacy numbers, there does appear to be some numbers that are considered sacred.
IS TONY ROMO ICONIC ENOUGH TO MERIT IMMORTALITY?
Yes, there are at least a handful of jersey numbers in the history of the Dallas Cowboys that merit being labelled untouchable. Should #9 be considered among those numbers. It should be noted, all of those sacred numbers belong to former Cowboys who are enshrined in the Hall of Fame. Is Tony Romo a Hall of Famer? That is another question that is sure to stir up some heated conversation among Cowboys fans. An easier question to answer is this; Has Tony Romo accomplished enough during his career with the Dallas Cowboys to merit consideration of the #9 being unofficially “off limits”? Unlike Roger Staubach, Bob Lilly, Troy Aikman, or Emmitt Smith (and Bob Hayes), Romo has not achieved a Super Bowl victory. In fact, Romo has not even come close. That is not entirely his fault but for an organisation with a championship pedigree and a rich history, a Super Bowl championship should be a minimum requirement in order for a jersey number to be considered sacred. For that reason, #9 is fair game.
IS JAYLON SMITH WORTHY OF THE #9?
The #9 is not off limits by any means, but that doesn’t mean it can be handed to just anybody. At minimum, it should be inherited by a player who has the potential to become a star and who can help create the same type of legacy that players who wear #88, #54, and #94 have for the Dallas Cowboys. Is Jaylon Smith a player who possess that kind of potential? If you asked Dallas Cowboys fans in 2018, many would probably agree that Jaylon would be an excellent candidate. Fast forward to 2021 and that number of fans will have dwindled to a small but loyal group that would represent a very small fraction of the fan base. Many Cowboys fans in 2021 are hoping and praying that Jaylon Smith has played his last down with the Dallas Cowboys. It is hard to argue in favour of of Jaylon Smith carrying on that tradition that #9 has laid out for him. The position Smith that plays already creates a big enough obstacle without Jaylon’s limitations on the field. But Jaylon Smith is a player that has been counted out before. He came back from a potential career ending, catastrophic injury in his final game in college to become an NFL starter and Pro Bowler. Maybe Jaylon Smith can bounce back in a major way with a new defensive coordinator in Dan Quinn who can help him maximise his talents and hide his shortcomings. Regardless of any of that, and despite what us Cowboy fans may think of Jaylon Smith’s desire to wear #9, it is a jersey number that obviously means a lot to him. Why else would he absorb the exorbitant cost of buying up the entire inventory of Jaylon Smith #54 jerseys in order to make it happen.
So despite what Dallas Cowboys fans think, the #9 means more to Jaylon Smith that it does for anyone else and for that reason, he is worthy of the #9. That brings me to my final question…
IS IT TOO SOON?
Thus far I have decided that the #9 is not sacred and that Jaylon Smith is worthy of becoming the next Dallas Cowboys player to wear it. Only one question remains…Is it too soon? Tony Romo only just retired 4 years ago. He is not yet eligible for consideration into the Hall of Fame and he has not been inducted into the Cowboys ring of honor. In fact, Tony Romo was actually a teammate of Jaylon Smith so it is fair to question whether or not it is too soon for any player to inherit the #9. How long should the #9 be left vacant if any time at all? For me, more than enough time has passed. CeeDee Lamb was given (or assigned) the #88 within 3 years of the Cowboys cutting Dez Bryant. Before that, the other Bryant 88 (Antonio) took over the same number less than 3 years removed from Michael Irvin’s retirement following a career ending neck injury. More importantly, the only person that actually has legitimate cause to determine if it is too soon or if it is disrespectful at all for Jaylon to wear that number has already given his blessing:
If Tony Romo himself doesn’t have an issue with Jaylon Smith wearing #9, then why should anybody else?
*Photo by Joe Glorioso;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcode
Better with 54