It's held on a Friday, and it's a luncheon that gets no publicity, but it's one of the highlights of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Annual Enshrinement Weekend.
This Friday afternoon gathering is so special because the only people invited – in fact, the only people even allowed in the room – are members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. When it comes to the National Football League, this is as exclusive a group as there is.
The most recent Hall of Fame luncheon, held on Friday, Aug. 2, was dominated by the Pittsburgh Steelers, and they got together to mark the occasion with an impressive photo.
In the foreground is Steelers Chairman Dan Rooney, and he is flanked by (left to right) Lynn Swann, Jack Ham, Franco Harris, Joe Greene, Jack Lambert, Mel Blount, and Dermontti Dawson. John Stallworth attended the luncheon, but he was not available when the photo was taken.
There are nine players from the Steelers dynasty of the 1970s who currently are members of the Hall of Fame – Greene, Ham, Blount, Terry Bradshaw, Harris, Lambert, Mike Webster, Swann, and Stallworth – and six of the seven who attended this year's luncheon posed for the photo. The only living member not attending the annual luncheon that day was Bradshaw. Webster died in September 2002.
Dawson was the player who followed Webster as the Steelers center, and he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in August 2012.
