Washington announces special tribute for Sean Taylor

Thanksgiving weekend was an emotional one for Washington Football Team fans, as Saturday marked the 14-year anniversary of Sean Taylor’s tragic death.

The former hard-hitting defensive back was killed while trying to defend his family during a home invasion on Nov. 27, 2007. He was just 24 years old and in the midst of his fourth full season in the NFL.

Washington honored Taylor by retiring his jersey at FedEx Field during halftime of Week 6, but they exasperated their fans in the process, forcing president Jason Wright to issue an apology during a radio appearance last week.

In light of all this criticism, Washington has admirably decided to further their efforts to honor the former Pro Bowler.

Per a team announcement, Washington plans to build a memorial of Taylor at FedEx Field. They plan to debut the memorial at some point in 2022.

The Washington Football Team will honor Sean Taylor in 2022.

It took two tries, but credit to Washington for getting the timing of this disclosure right. Announcing Taylor’s jersey retirement ceremony days a head of time was a disaster in every sense of the word. Confirming his memorial several months in advance was simply the only course of action here.

"“Like the heart he showed on the field each and every day, Sean Taylor left a large and enduring imprint on our franchise,” the team said in it statement. “To celebrate Sean’s legacy, we are excited to announce that we are partnering with the Taylor family to honor Sean with a physical memorial at FedEx Field, to be unveiled with a ceremony during the 2022 season…..but, we need you, too.”"

What did Washington mean by “we need you, too”? Well, on April 1, Taylor’s birthday, the franchise will launch the “Sean Taylor Memorial Project,” and wants fans to offer their input for the project and be involved in the dedication ceremony.

Now THAT is how you honor a franchise legend.

In terms of boxes Washington checked in this announcement process, it seems as though they are keeping Taylor’s family involved, are actually considering fans’ opinions, which wasn’t possible for his jersey retirement, and gave fans a big heads up.

Tough to ask for much more than that. Yes, all of Washington’s bases should’ve been covered the first go around, but this is a step in the right direction.

For all the criticism they came under for the jersey retirement ceremony, Washington is seemingly just months away from honoring Taylor to the nth degree.