Art Rooney Jr., an underrated architect of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ dynasty, is one step closer to following many of the players he scouted and helped draft into the Hall of Fame. Rooney is one of the 25 names remaining for the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame Contributor category as the Hall whittled the list down from 47 names.
Rooney, now 88 years old, served as the Steelers’ personnel director from 1965 to 1986. There, he helped take Pittsburgh from a history of lovable losers into a dynasty. Under his watch, the team drafted QB Terry Bradshaw, RB Franco Harris, WRs Lynn Swann and John Stallworth, DT Joe Greene, LBs Jack Lambert and Jack Ham, CB Mel Blount, all Hall of Famers and core members of the Steelers’ 1970s dynasty.