IRVING, Texas -- When the Dallas Cowboys had their rookie minicamp the week after the NFL draft, Charles Haley was in attendance with his doberman dogs. When the San Francisco 49ers had their rookie minicamp last week, Haley was spotted there, too.
Haley's Hall of Fame career had two different stints with the 49ers (1986-91, 1998-99) and one with the Cowboys (1992-96). He won two Super Bowls with the 49ers and three with the Cowboys. He is in the Cowboys' Ring of Honor.
This summer he will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, where he will be presented by former 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo.
"I wanted to do like a combo but the Hall of Fame wouldn't [allow it] and I stressed to them there's not going to be anybody that's going to be with one team the rest of their careers," Haley said. "You're going to start having guys play five years here and five years there and have great success at both plays so what do you do? And they're toying with that right now.
"I promised Bill Walsh before he died that I wanted him to present me and he called me like two days before he passed and he just followed my whole career. He was there for me and I could call him about anything. Hey, that was an easy thing for me to go with the 49ers."
But it's not a slight toward the Cowboys and owner and general manager Jerry Jones. The Cowboys will still be involved in Haley's Hall of Fame festivities.
"Jerry's always been real with me and he knows my heart and he knows what I'm about," Haley said.
Haley admitted his life has changed since being selected for induction. The long wait to get in will be worth it in August.
"The best thing is I've been to the dentist twice whitening my teeth," he said, "because that's all they're going to see."