The Washington Redskins may have another jersey number controversy on their hands. Washington selected quarterback Dwayne Haskins in the first round of last week’s NFL Draft, bringing a lot of excitement back into a fan base that appeared frustrated with the direction of the team.
With Haskins tabbed as the quarterback of the future, now comes the issue of what jersey number will he wear?
Haskins has worn the No. 7 going back to at least his time at Bullis High School in Potomac, Md. The number has been famously associated to former Redskins’ quarterback Joe Theismann, who guided the franchise to its first-ever Super Bowl title following the 1982 season.
Theismann’s career was cut short after his catastrophic leg injury in 1985 during a sack by New York Giants great Lawrence Taylor. The Redskins, who do not retire jersey numbers, have not issued the No. 7 ever since.
Theismann is “not opposed” to changing that for Haskins, but he wants to sit down and talk to the young quarterback before giving the okay.
āIām anxious to sit down and talk to Dwayne about that,ā Theismann said while appearing on Redskins Talk podcast. āIām not opposed to it. Iām not saying yes yet, but I really want to sit down and talk to the young man and get a chance to meet him. I know heās reached out and said he wants to ask me, so as early as I can get back into town and be able to set up an opportunity when he gets into town to be able to sit down and talk to him about it.ā
Seems fair considering all the options. Theismann wore the number for 12 seasons with the Redskins, and is viewed by many as the best quarterback in Redskins’ recent history. Haskins showing he deserves the blessing from Theismann would only add to the aura of his selection to Washington.
