While the adventure of being on Dancing with the Stars is unlike shaking off corners and safeties, running fly patterns and receiving passes from Super Bowl quarterback Ben Rothlisberger, Hines Ward did ok on the Season 12 opening telecast. He scored a 21 out of 30 on his first dance. It was a Cha-Cha with teammate Kym Johnson. Ward showed that not only does he have moves on the football field, he has some clever moves on the dance floor as well.
Other NFL players that have put in an appearance on the show include future Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice, Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith, former New York Jets linebacker Jason Taylor, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Warren Sapp, Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor (now in some kind of sexual trouble), Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco and former Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner. Nearly all NFL players have done ok in the dance competition. Jerry Rice, Jason Taylor and Warren Sapp were all runners-up when they were on the program. The only one who won was Emmitt Smith on the show's third season. Who really thought that football players could be that fluid on the dance floor.
Franco Harris was in the crowd cheering on Ward and it looked as if the Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Famer was waving a Steelers "Terrible Towel" when the camera was on him. The Steelers might not have won an additional Lombardi Trophy this past year, but maybe Hines Ward has set his sights on one more championship trophy that looks a lot like a great big mirror ball. Lynn Swann step aside, if the balett tights fit, Hines will wear them. Possibly all of the dancing Hines Ward is doing on tv could actually end up being a replacement for strength and conditioning drills, particularly since the NFL players are unable to make use of their team's workout facilities.
