Who Wore It Best? Part 3

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By Noonefromtampa

Welcome to Part 3 of my new weekly offseason column that will reflect back on the history of the Redskins franchise by looking at former and current players from the 1960s through the present and the jersey numbers they wore.

This week, we’ll reminisce about jerseys numbered from 20 to 29.

Jersey #20

Jersey #20 has been very popular through the years. Hall-of-Fame halfback Cliff Battles wore that number, but since we are looking at modern era players, Battles doesn’t qualify. Defensive backs who have worn #20 include Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Alvoid Mays, Chase Minnifield, Pierson Prioleau, Ken Stone, Greg Toler, and Justin Tryon; running backs include Skip Hicks, Chad Morton, and Lionel Vital. Vital was one of the replacement players in the 1987 strike season average, averaging 115.3 yards per game for his three game NFL career. He is currently the Director of College Scouting for the Dallas Cowboys. The player who wore it best, though, was Joe “The Bird” Lavender.  Here’s the key information for him:

  • Came to the Redskins in a trade with the Eagles
  • 91 careers starts with 99 games played
  • Redskins 5th all-time with 29 interceptions

Jersey #21

The obvious and sentimental favorite here would be Sean Taylor, but there have been a number of other players who made memorable contributions while wearing this number, such as running backs Earnest Byner and Terry Allen, cornerback Deion Sanders, and special teams return man Mike Nelms. Byner had a very good season during the 1991 Super Bowl run rushing for over 1,000 yards, but Taylor is the choice for #21.

Jersey #22

This group has a number of defensive backs, including Deshazor Everett, Curtis Jordan, Carlos Rogers, Johnny Thomas, plus running backs Jamie Morris and Mike Thomas. Mike Thomas was infamous among fans for his runs parallel to the line of scrimmage ending with him running out of bounds. Rogers and Jordan were the best of this list, with the nod going to Jordan, who played on the 1982 and 1983 Super Bowl teams, winning a ring in 1982, and had 11 interceptions as a Redskin.

Jersey #23

This group is all defensive backs: Todd Bowles, DeAngelo Hall, Brig Owens, Tony Peters, and Matt Stevens. Bowles and Peters played on some great Redskins teams in the 1980s and 1990s. Hall was a key part of the defense when he was with the team and had 23 interceptions with 3 touchdowns. The one who wore it best goes to Owens. His accomplishments include:

  • one of 20 Redskins who played 150 or more games with the team
  • 2nd all time on the team with 36 interceptions

Jersey #24

Twenty-four has been a popular number over the years. Players who worn this jersey include defensive backs Champ Bailey, Pat Eilers, DeJon Gomes, Josh Norman, Lemar Parrish, Bacarri Rambo, Stanley Richard, Johnny Sample, and Shawn Springs to offensive players such as Bill Malinchak, Kelvin Bryant, and Marcus Mason.  There are some interesting players such as Sample, who was the first Redskins trading card I owned (sorry but it is long gone), while Malinchak was a favorite of George Allen and excelled at blocking kicks. Kelvin Bryant was a tremendous third down back when healthy (which was an issue for him). The player wore it best comes down to Bailey, Springs or Parrish. Parrish had the most interceptions as a Redskin, but Bailey is a Hall-of-Fame level talent. Bailey gets the nod here.

Jersey #25

This group includes defensive backs Kevin Barnes, Rashad Bauman, Eddie Brown, Tom Carter, and Ryan Clark, and running backs Benny Malone, Mike Oliphant, Chris Thompson, Joe Washington, and A.D. Whitfield. Carter was a high pick with a solid but not outstanding career, whereas Ryan Clark had his best years with the Steelers. Eddie Brown had one of the most memorable punt returns for touchdown in Redskins history, in a Monday Night Football game against the Cardinals on October 25, 1976, (click here to watch it) to seal a win. The player who wore it best was Joe Washington, who was a 3rd down back and return specialist early in the Gibbs era.

Jersey #26

While not in the group, Don Shula wore #26 for his one season as a defensive back for the Redskins. The group in consideration is Bob Brunet, Danny Copeland, Cris Dishman, Paul Krause, Terry Metcalf, Ifeanyi Ohalete, Adrian Peterson, Clinton Portis, and Josh Wilson. Krause is a Hall of Fame safety who was traded to the Vikings, where he spent the majority of his career, in one of the least smart moves the Redskins made in the 60s.  The choice comes down to Portis and Peterson, with Portis getting the nod, especially because of his press conference characters such as “Sheriff Gonna Getcha” and “Southeast Jerome”.

Jersey #27

The players who’ve worn this number are mainly defensive backs, but there are some really good ones: Mark Carrier, Brad Edwards, Greg Evans, Walt Harris, Ken Houston, Fred Smoot, and Keith Taylor. Carrier was part of the class of 2000 “Free agents who would help us win the Super Bowl” and did not play all that well.  This group comes down to Edwards, who played on the 1991 Super Bowl team, Fred “The Mouth of the South” Smoot (18 interceptions as a Redskin) and Hall of Fame safety Ken Houston. Houston gets the nod. He has one of the top plays for a Redskins defensive player with a key stop to win a game against the Cowboys on Monday Night Football (to watch it, click here). I was in attendance at that game, which was the first time I went to a Monday Night Football game.

Jersey #28

Easy one – Darrell Green; sorry Herb Mul-Key.

Jersey #29

The players who have worn this number are an interesting group, including Reggie Branch, Chris Culliver, Roy Helu, Mark Murphy, Mike Rumph, Sam Shade, Leigh Torrence, Scott Turner, and Ted Vactor. Two running backs, Helu and Branch, showed flashes of promise. The rest are defensive backs, from free agent busts like Culliver and Rumph, to Torrence (who suffered a devastating career ending knee injury) and good players like Vactor and Shade. However, the one who wore it best goes to Mark Murphy, who was on the 1982 and 1983 Super Bowl teams and currently heads the Green Bay Packers organization. Murphy is tied for 7th on the Redskins career interceptions list with 27.

Next week, I will review jersey numbers thirty through thirty-nine.