I Was Right, You Were Wrong. Steelers Ownership Likely To Stay With Dan Rooney

Looks like the ownership issues surrounding the Steelers and Rooney family are nearing a completion. And I called it back in July.

Take it away, NYT:


...at least two of the [Rooney] brothers have recently tilted toward selling to Dan Rooney.

Rooney and his son Art II met with the league’s finance committee last week to update it on their offer for the team, which includes outside investors who have not been publicly identified. Each of the five brothers owns 16 percent of the team, and N.F.L. rules mandate that one person own at least 30 percent.

Last month, the four younger brothers rejected a bid from the hedge fund billionaire and Steelers fan Stanley Druckenmiller, who had offered an all-cash deal to buy out their shares of the team. That decision followed a meeting of all five brothers with Commissioner Roger Goodell, after which Goodell made clear that the owners of the other 31 N.F.L. teams would do everything possible to ensure that Dan Rooney retained control of the team — an indication that the owners, who must approve the sale, would reject any other suitor.

...

“Dan Rooney made it extremely clear that he was not going to be involved in the gambling business moving forward if he was successful in being able to complete this transaction,” Goodell said. He added, “That is important to our ownership because it is one of the rules that they are not in compliance with.”


Before the season, I had this to say about the struggles:


It seems that Dan is just trying to buy his brothers' shares in the team. Said brothers have more of an interest in other Rooney family investments, mostly gambling. This would rectify several ownership confusions.

First, it would separate the team from any gambling enterprises, something Dan is really trying for. That's what a classy, proactive owner does, solves discrepancies before someone else brings up the issue and creates a non-story controversy of the Steelers being linked to gambling.

Also, this would allow Dan to adhere to NFL rules, which apparently the Rooneys were not doing to the fullest extent. Each of the 5 brothers owns 16% of the team. NFL rules state that the majority owner needs at least a 30% share. No one questioned the Rooney's since 5 shares of 16% all came from the same family.

I see this going down one of two ways:

1. Dan buys out his brothers' shares, keeping the team on his side of the family while selling his stakes in the other business ventures (gambling) to his brothers.

or

2. Dan buys out his brothers' shares, and sells a minority stake in the team to an unrelated buyer, most likely Stanley Druckenmiller, the billionaire head of Duquesne Capital Management.

And if Rooney sells the team outright, you can call me any insult in the book.


Test my foresight again, assholes. I can't believe some people actually believed the Steelers would be in hands that didn't belong to Dan Rooney and his kin. The Stanley Druckenmiller fiasco was a hot topic at the time, so it only made my worst-case scenario beliefs.

So, phew...you don't get to insult me and my predictions.

The Steelers seem to be remaining with Dan Rooney and his family, and we can go back to only worrying about the team and who we play each week.

Did I Just Find The Culprit In The Case Of The Steelers' Flawed Super Bowl IX Ring?

I'd be a horrible sports blogger if I didn't go making up rumors and posting them to the Internets for all the MSM to gasp over. So here's a little nugget for you in place of actual news or funny videos and pictures.

Earlier this week, we learned the story of the Steelers Super Bowl IX and X rings that were sold on eBay for a nice round figure of $66,000. Astute readers pointed out that on the SB IX ring, there was a mistake in the score of the Steelers' win over Buffalo. The real score was 32-14. The ring states 32-6. We're pretty gracious people in Steelers Country, and don't want to gyp Buffalo out of 8 points in the playoffs. With all the heartbreak they've suffered in their postseason history, we'd be jerks if we only acknowledged 6 of their total 14 points scored that day.

But whose fault is the error?


"I'll be damned," said Joe Gordon, who headed the Steelers public relations and marketing from 1969 to 1998. "I find it almost impossible to believe because so many of us checked it."


So...not Joe or any of his cronies.


"Anytime something of that magnitude is involved, Dan Rooney would have handled it," Mr. Gordon said. "And Dan is so meticulous in everything he does. I find it almost incomprehensible."


So...maybe Dan, but highly unlikely.

Being that its the first Super Bowl ring in team history, I'm going to guess the Steelers looked over every bit of that ring design before it went into production. Sure, most of that faith comes from my Steelers-centric homerism, but for argument's, and this rumor's, sake, let's guess the error didn't come out of Pittsburgh.

Let's assume the problem arises from Minnesota.

Remember the awkward moments in high school when you got a glossy brochure filled with tons of rings for you to pay out the ass for to wrap up your secondary education? Gold, white gold, diamonds, rubies, simple, extravagant. I didn't buy one, because high school rings are stupid. Well, the company that tried to get you to purchase their products, Jostens, also makes the Super Bowl rings.

Here's where it gets interesting.

Jostens is based in Minneapolis. There's an NFL team in Minneapolis, in case you didn't know, that goes by the name Vikings. The ring in question commemorates Super Bowl IX, in which Pittsburgh bested the Vikings 16-6. Now we've got something.

Come on, Nick, you're just overreacting and trying to make the puzzle pieces fit. Uh, damn straight. Look at this little tidbit (emphasis mine):


A check with Jostens, the Minneapolis-based jeweler that produced the rings, proved that while the Steelers' original design had the accurate score, the ring molds -- which the company keeps in a large vault -- show the wrong score. And no one ever noticed or corrected it.


All of a sudden, rumors start to make sense.

Did Jostens take exception to the hometown Vikings losing their second straight Super Bowl, and purposefully flaw the ring in such a way that only the guilty parties knew of and some inquisitive nerds would find out decades later? I'm sure we'll never know the exact truth, but its interesting when you have all the information. Most fans would pass it off as an honest mistake, but honest mistakes don't make sports blogs interesting.

I'm on to you, Jostens. Not only do you dupe kids into buying overpriced rings that they'll never wear...or if the do wear 'em, they look like dorks...but now you've gone ahead and pissed off Steelers Nation. I'd suggest keeping your brochures out of Pittsburgh-area schools from now on, ya twerps.

Rooney Trying To Sell The Steelers?

Relax, Dan Rooney isn't going to sell the team (I've seen this everywhere, but chest bump to The White Boob Boom for emailing it to me).

It seems that Dan is just trying to buy his brothers' shares in the team. Said brothers have more of an interest in other Rooney family investments, mostly gambling. This would rectify several ownership confusions.

First, it would separate the team from any gambling enterprises, something Dan is really trying for. That's what a classy, proactive owner does, solves discrepancies before someone else brings up the issue and creates a non-story controversy of the Steelers being linked to gambling.

Also, this would allow Dan to adhere to NFL rules, which apparently the Rooneys were not doing to the fullest extent. Each of the 5 brothers owns 16% of the team. NFL rules state that the majority owner needs at least a 30% share. No one questioned the Rooney's since 5 shares of 16% all came from the same family.

I see this going down one of two ways:

1. Dan buys out his brothers' shares, keeping the team on his side of the family while selling his stakes in the other business ventures (gambling) to his brothers.

or

2. Dan buys out his brothers' shares, and sells a minority stake in the team to an unrelated buyer, most likely Stanley Druckenmiller, the billionaire head of Duquesne Capital Management.

And if Rooney sells the team outright, you can call me any insult in the book.

Dan Rooney Endorses Obama

As noted on PSaMP before, the Steelers are Democrats. Well, except for Lynn Swann.

The latest Obama-endorser is owner Dan Rooney. He joins Franco Harris and Jerome Bettis as Obama supporters.

"As a grandfather and a citizen of this community, I think Barack Obama's thoughtful, strategic approach is important to America," Rooney said. "When I hear how excited young people seem to be when they talk about this man, I believe he will do what is best for them, which is to inspire them to be great Americans."

Solid quote.

This is a bit of a surprise, seeing as how Rooney doesn't usually endorse candidates.

Apparently, the endorsement comes on the heels of stupid Dan Onorato foolishly giving Hillary Clinton a personalized Steelers jersey with Gary Anderson's old number. Thanks for setting the record straight, Roon!

Rest in Peace, Patricia Jesek

All condolences must go out to the family of my best buddy, Bob. Over the weekend, his grandmother, Patricia Jesek, passed away.

Patricia was the oft-forgotten adopted daughter of Art "The Chief" Rooney. Actually, she was Art's niece, whom he adopted and raised along with his 5 sons. That also made her the sister/cousin of currently-in-charge-Dan Rooney.

According to Bob, Art called Patricia his, "jewel."

What, you didn't know Art had a daughter? Now you know.

She battled cancer late in her life, and even had her voice box removed.

I was lucky enough to meet her before her voice box was removed, and she was truly a unique and caring individual. I know how much my buddy and his family cared for her, and saying that she'll be missed is an understatement.

All the condolences and sympathy that PSaMP can give go to Patricia's family, especially her children, Pat, Carrie and Kathleen. You will be in my prayers.

Rest in Peace and watch over your family, Patricia.