Sean Michael Maurice Taylor (April 1, 1983 – November 27, 2007) was an American professional football safety for the Washington Redskins of the NFL. He was selected fifth overall in the 2004 NFL draft by the Redskins, where he played four seasons until his murder in 2007.
Taylor was inducted posthumously as the 43rd member into the Washington Redskins Ring of Fame on November 30, 2008.
Multiple players have honored Taylor by donning his jersey numbers that he wore during his college and professional career. During his college career Taylor wore No. 26 for the Miami Hurricanes. As a rookie in 2004, he wore No. 36 before switching to No. 21 for the remainder of his career. Taylor's former teammate and fellow safety Ryan Clark returned to the Washington Redskins in 2014 after an eight-year stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers. During practices, Clark wore No. 21 in Taylor's honor. The Washington Redskins' second round pick in the 2016 NFL draft, Su'a Cravens, chose No. 36 upon joining the Redskins as a rookie in dedication to Taylor. Cravens switched to No. 39 in 2017 after safety D. J. Swearinger requested No. 36 after signing with the Redskins as a free agent. Swearinger wore No. 36 throughout four teams in his professional career as a way to honor Taylor. Heading into the 2015 season, the New York Giants announced safety Landon Collins would switch from No. 27 to No. 21 to honor Taylor. Collins also wore Taylor's college number (No. 26) during his collegiate career at Alabama as a way to pay tribute.
In September 2020, one of the roads leading to FedExField was renamed Sean Taylor Road in Taylor's memory. On October 17, 2021, the Washington franchise retired Sean Taylor's number 21 before a game against the Kansas City Chiefs with his family in attendance.[83]
On November 27, 2022, the Washington Commanders unveiled a statue-like display honoring Taylor at FedExField. The unveiling was followed by criticism of the design and lack of a physical statue.
🫶 Sean Taylor 🫶
Rooting for Miami tonight.
#CFB | #MIAvsIND | #RaiseHail