Jump to content

Is Marshall to wear #15 or #19 w/Jets?


Gas2No99

Recommended Posts

Serious question. May consider opening up a shop refurbishing massively over-produced & dead-stock Tebow Jets jerseys into Marshall jerseys!

 

What happened to the NFL rule that WRs had to be within the 80s number set? 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Serious question. May consider opening up a shop refurbishing massively over-produced & dead-stock Tebow Jets jerseys into Marshall jerseys!

What happened to the NFL rule that WRs had to be within the 80s number set?

80s aren't the only numbers WRs can wear n it's not a new rule. They can wear from 10-19 as well.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not sure why all WRs wore numbers in the 80's for like 30 years. It wasn't a rule, but giving them numbers in the teens was certainly not encouraged.

 

It makes it easy for refs to know who's supposed to line up where and who's out of place. Certainly to know who's eligible to catch passes. Exceptions need to be announced, otherwise the defense wouldn't stand a chance (ask John Harbaugh his opinion on the difference between "creative" and "deceptive" play design. No doubt the numbering system was at least partially meant to eliminate the latter).

I think it may have been a rule and they extended it to the teens not long ago because some teams ran out of 80s numbers. They could have a one or two 80s numbers retired, plus 3 or 4 TEs, plus 6 or 7 WRs. Over a summer they carry even more WRs/TEs. There are only so many numbers to go around before they have to dip into the 10-19 range for their WRs (or in the 40s range for TEs). 

 

But for the longest time I don't remember having seen even one in the 10-19 range (except for old highlight films) until Keyshawn. Don't know if he got special treatment because he was the #1 pick or not, but it seems so. I can't remember what he wore over the summer, but it was probably 19 and they just let him keep it. No one else did it until they changed the rule for everyone about 10 years ago and since then it's obviously been very common. I think they used to be less strict about it in the preseason (for rookies and general camp fodder) but once the season started they had to comply.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ha! Friggin' Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_number_(American_football. Should have just looked here.

 

 

Those who wear numbers between 50 and 79 are, by rule, prohibited from catching or touching forward passes if their team is in possession of the ball. Other than this, player numbers' correspondence to their positions is largely an issue of semantics.

 

Since the National Football League imposed its numbering system in 1973, only two major changes have been made. In 1984[citation needed], the NFL allowed defensive linemen and linebackers to wear jersey numbers in the 90–99 range, since more teams were making use of the 3–4 defense and thus were quickly exhausting numbers for linebackers, who previously were only allowed to wear numbers in the 50–59 range. (Before this change, the NFL had outlawed the 90–99 range for regular season use since it was rarely issued before 1973, but did permit it for the preseason; Lawrence Taylor wore his college number 98 during his rookie training camp with the Giants in 1981 before switching to his more familiar 56 before the start of the season.) Another change occurred in 2004, when the NFL allowed wide receivers to wear numbers 10–19 in addition to the 80–89 range; this was due to several NFL teams retiring 80-range numbers, as well as teams employing more receivers and tight ends in their offense. Since 2010, defensive linemen are allowed to wear numbers 50-59; this is in part because of the interchangeability of linebackers and defensive ends (a defensive end in a 4-3 defense would be an outside linebacker in a 3-4).

Below is the numbering system established by the NFL and in place since 1973:[1]

#s QB RB WR TE / H OL DL LB DB K P

1-9 Yes No No[a] No No No No No Yes Yes

10–19 Yes No Yes No No No No No Yes Yes

20–29 No Yes No No No No No Yes No No

30–39 No Yes No No No No No Yes No No

40–49 No Yes No Yes No No No Yes No No

50–59 No No No No Yes Yes Yes No No No

60–69 No No No No Yes Yes No No No No

70–79 No No No No Yes Yes No No No No

80–89 No No Yes Yes No No No No No No

90–99 No No No No No Yes Yes No No No

(best I can paste a table without more than 2 seconds of effort)

 

When the more rigid system went into effect in 1973, players who played in the league before then were given a grandfather clause to continue wearing newly prohibited numbers (i.e. many wide receivers wore jersey numbers in the teens and 20s before the rule changes required receivers to wear numbers in the 80s, and many defensive linemen and linebackers wore numbers in the 80s).

 

Exceptions

Many exceptions to the rules have been granted. The most notable case may be former wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson, who was allowed to wear number 19 despite available numbers in the 80s (though he had to pay "fines" for the privilege). This, combined with the fact that more NFL teams were retiring 80s numbers, led to the league to allow wide receivers to wear numbers 10–19 in addition to 80s numbers in 2004.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

80s aren't the only numbers WRs can wear n it's not a new rule. They can wear from 10-19 as well.

 

It isn't super-new (~10 years). But relative to the history of the league, it is kind of a new rule, though. Whether it's considered new I guess depends on who you ask.

 

Don Maynard wore #13 so was that ever really a rule ?

 

Maynard retired in 1972. The rule went into effect a year later (but he would have been grandfathered in if he was still playing and so desired).

 

Not sure why all WRs wore numbers in the 80's for like 30 years. It wasn't a rule, but giving them numbers in the teens was certainly not encouraged.

 

It was a rule for 31 years, from 1973-2003. Didn't know it was from 1973 myself until I just looked it up this morning. 

 

The exceptions were for grandfathered players already wearing non-80s numbers, plus one exception in 1996 just for Keyshawn Johnson after he was the #1 overall pick. Good thing things like this had no effect on his ego. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Devin Hester was #23

He was kind of grandfathered in from what I remember, since he entered the league as a defensive back. But once he left Chicago and was already clearly established as a WR, the league would not let him wear 23 in Atlanta.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  :sign0103-1:

 

RULE 5, SECTION 4, ARTICLE 3( c)

 

IT IS a RULE!

 

 

PLAYERS NUMBERED BY POSITION

Article 2 All players must wear numerals on their jerseys in accordance with Rule 5, Section 4, Article 3( c). Such numerals

must be by playing position, as follows:

(a) quarterbacks, punters, and placekickers: 1–19;

(b ) running backs and defensive backs: 20–49;

© centers: 50–79;

(d) offensive guards and tackles: 60–79;

(e) wide receivers: 10–19 and 80–89;

(f) tight ends and H-backs: 40–49 and 80–89;

(g) defensive linemen: 50–79 and 90–99;

(h) linebackers: 50–59 and 90–99.

If a player changes his position during his playing career in the NFL, and such change moves him from a position as an

ineligible pass receiver to that of an eligible pass receiver, or from a position as an eligible pass receiver to that of an

ineligible pass receiver, he must be issued an appropriate new jersey numeral. A change in jersey numeral is not required

if the change is from an ineligible position to another ineligible position, or from an eligible position to another eligible

position, provided that the player has participated at least one season at his position prior to the change.

Any request to wear a numeral for a special position not specified above (e.g., H-back) must be made to the Commissioner.

During the preseason period when playing rosters are larger, the League will allow duplication and other temporary deviations

from the numbering scheme specified above, but the rule must be adhered to for all players during the regular season and

postseason. Clubs must make numerals available to adhere to the rule, even if it requires returning to circulation a

numeral that has been retired or withheld for other reasons. See 5-3-1 for reporting a change of position.

 

 

THis is from the 2013 OFFICIAL NFL RULEBOOK

Page 28 - http://static.nfl.com/static/content/public/image/rulebook/pdfs/2013%20-%20Rule%20Book.pdf

 

 

 

15 it is!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...