Pittsburgh Steelers vice president Art Rooney Jr., and architect of the team’s 1970s dynasty, was left off the ballot for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2027.

Rooney was a semifinalist in voting for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026 in the contributor category. New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft was eventally selected as the lone finalist from the contributor panel for last year’s class, and he was not elected into the Hall of Fame.

Kraft is again part of this year’s contributor pool, along with initial NFL organizer and Canton Bulldogs owner Ralph Hay; Chicago Bears owner Virginia Halas McCaskey; Washington Redskins and Commanders quarterback and personnel executive Doug Williams and Cowboys, Eagles and Ravens front-office executive and chairman of the Fritz Pollard Alliance John Wooten.

Rooney, 91, has been officially employed with the Steelers since 1961, but has been involved with the team his entire life, starting as a ball boy. The son of team founder Art Rooney Sr., Rooney Jr. worked in the ticket office and public relations before finding his calling in the Steelers scouting department, beginning in 1964.

From 1965 until 1986, Rooney worked in the Steelers’ scouting department as personnel director, and he was one of the architects of the Steelers’ four Super Bowl championship teams in the 1970s. He, along with his brother Dan Rooney, changed the team’s strategy to one that would build through the NFL Draft, something that has continued to the present day.

Under Rooney’s watch, the Steelers drafted nine Hall of Famers and signed a tenth as an undrafted free agent. The number could increase to 11 if former Steelers defensive end L.C. Greenwood makes the Hall of Fame.

“Art put together the greatest draft class in NFL history – that’s why he should be in the Hall of Fame like Bill Nunn,” former Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert said. “Art didn’t have a big staff when he put those 70’s teams together. He’d hire high school coaches as part-time scouts to fill in scouting duties – to grade film and things like that. The guys that did a good job, he’d recommend to Jack Butler who was with BLESTO at the time. My high school coach was Ron Hughes and he was the one that got me hooked up with BLESTO.”

Rooney was fired as personnel director in 1986, but he remained with the team in other roles, working in the club’s real estate division.

In addition to his semifinalist run last year, Art Rooney Jr. was also a semifinalist for the 2025, 2024 and 2023 classes. Both his brother Dan Rooney and father Art Rooney Sr. have both been previously enshrined in Canton, Ohio.

The Hall of Fame made significant changes to the voting process for 2027, reducing the number of semifinalists in the contributor and coaching categories and eliminating the seniors category altogether, with all players being considered in one large pool, which will put forward 13 finalists along with one coach and one contributor.

In addition to those changes, the voting pool has been reduced, with Pittsburgh losing its representation on the voting panel.

Former Steelers coach Buddy Parker has also been a semifinalist in past years, along with Greenwood, who was a seniors finalist for the Class of 2026. Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will be eligible for the first time in 2027.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS IN THE PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME

1963: Owner/Coach Bert Bell, FB/Coach Johnny “Blood’ McNally, OT Cal Hubbard 1964: Owner Art Rooney 1966: RB Bill Dudley, G/Coach Walt Kiesling 1967: QB Bobby Layne 1969: FB Marion Motley 1969: DT Ernie Stautner 1987: DT Joe Greene, FB John Henry Johnson, QB Len Dawson 1988: OLB Jack Ham 1989: CB Mel Blount, QB Terry Bradshaw 1990: RB Franco Harris, OLB Jack Lambert 1993: Coach Chuck Noll 1997: C Mike Webster 2000: Owner Dan Rooney 2001: WR Lynn Swann 2002: WR John Stallworth 2009: CB Rod Woodson 2012: CB Jack Butler, C Dermontti Dawson 2015: RB Jerome Bettis 2016: OLB Kevin Greene 2020: SS Troy Polamalu, SS Donnie Shell, Coach Bill Cowher 2021: G Alan Faneca, Scout Bill Nunn