Cleveland Browns fans remember that Bill Belichick's coaching career began in Cleveland in the early 1990s. He knew Browns' legendary RB Jim Brown. Belichick invited him to meet the team several times in the early 1990s. He recently spoke about how the players did not know who Brown was so he quickly fixed that problem by showing the tape of him in action.
Brown died last year. Shortly before his death, the NFL renamed the annual rushing yards leader award after him. But Belichick thinks they can and should do more.
Belichick believes the NFL should retire Jim Brown's number 32 across all 32 teams. This is comparable to how MLB treated Jackie Robinson's jersey number. The Pittsburgh Steelers have already retired the number because the late Franco Harris wore it, and the Giants retired it for Al Blozis.
Brown's legacy in football is unparalleled. Among his many accolades, he was the first player to rush for more than 100 touchdowns and more than 10,000 yards.
Would the NFL make an unprecedented and radical move to retire Jim Brown's number across all teams?