On Friday morning, Todd, the son of Dick Haley, announced that the Pittsburgh Steelers legend had died at the age of 85. A real Pennsylvania guy, Haley was best known for his years with the Steelers in black and gold.
In the early days of the NFL, Dick Haley found himself a ninth-round pick. He ended up making a career out of it as a player. He cemented himself as a legend of Pittsburgh. His son took to Twitter on Friday to let fans and others know Dick had moved on.
“Very sorry to say, the world, the NFL and my entire family lost one of the best people I’ve ever known and my idol,” Todd said on Twitter. “A man that gave me the best chance to succeed in this world. My father Dick Haley after long fight with dementia and Parkinson’s. I love you DAD!”
The Haley family is a football family. Which is why Todd Haley is still doing things on the field as a coach. Todd grew up as a ball boy for the Steelers and went to as many events as he could with his father.
Dick Haley would instill a lot of football knowledge in his son. In fact, Todd is one of the very few coaches that have had no football playing experience beyond his young childhood.
The head coach of the Memphis Showboats now, Todd is right when he says that the world and the NFL have lost an important figure.
Dick Haley Went Beyond Playing Years
While Dick Haley was only in the NFL from 1959 to 1964, he had an impact beyond the game. He had 14 interceptions and two touchdowns in 75 games. But that only tells a fraction of the story.
In his role with player personnel, Haley was able to help draft some of the most important players in Steelers’ history. If it wasn’t for his work, you could argue they might have not won four Super Bowls in the 1970s. He would go on to work for the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets.
There is a generation of football stars that are aging now. Dick Haley was among the group that helped bring football into the modern era. Not just on the field but in offices and on the sidelines. The former cornerback will be missed in the city of Pittsburgh and all over the NFL.
