For some Redskins players, their jersey number represents something significant. A cherished memory, a way to honor someone or it’s just their favorite number.
For others, well, it’s just the shirt they wear.
We caught up with the team members to find out why they wear the number they wear. Here are their stories:
No. 3 Dustin Hopkins, placekicker
“It was the number I liked the most of the options I had to choose from when I got here. So I just like 3, it’s a — biblically speaking — it’s a good number, not that I think it’s lucky or anything like that, but yeah, I like it. It’s a cool number. It looks all right on the jersey, you know what I’m saying?”
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No. 5 Tress Way, punter
“So it’s a really deep story. I got claimed off the waiver wire in 2014, and I walked into my locker and there was a No. 5 hanging there, and that’s it. Now, it means a lot to me, because I’ve never been 5 in my life, so I look to be 5 here forever.”
No. 7 Dwayne Haskins, quarterback
“Seven is a biblical number. I’ve been wearing it since I was 10 years old. Its significance? It’s just something I always wear. It’s a quarterback’s number. That’s the reason I wear it.”
The biblical reference, for people who don’t know, what is it?
“It’s a perfect number, and it’s in a lot of Scriptures, a lot of Bible verses, and I have it tatted on me.”
No. 8 Case Keenum, quarterback
“It was available, and I hadn’t been 8 before. I didn’t want to be 4 again. Eight is twice as good as 4, so I’m hoping to have twice as good of a season as last year.”
No. 10 Paul Richardson, receiver
“I wanted No. 15, because in college I used to wear No. 6, so I used to hold up a 1 and a 5 every time I scored. I had the whole school doing it, then, so I wanted that 1-5 because I couldn’t get 6. I ended up getting 10 because it was close to the single digits as I could get. I really wanted 11, but Percy Harvin had 11, so I was like, ‘Percy ain’t giving up his number.’ So then I took 10, and 10 was Jim Zorn’s number, it was retired, but he let me take it out of retirement, and that was another reason I wanted it.”
No. 12 Colt McCoy, quarterback
“You really want to know?”
Yes, indeed, I would.
“I never wore 12. When I was in high school, I wore No. 4 for Brett Favre, because I was a huge Brett Favre fan. Then when I got to college (at Texas) it was taken by Limas Sweed, and Roy Williams had used it before that. I was not really a high recruit, so when it was time to get all your equipment as a young freshman, I walk in, and the equipment manager goes, ‘Well, what’s your name?’ I told him my name. ‘What position do you play?’ I told him what position I played. ‘Well, you’ve got big shoes to fill around here.’ He said, ‘What number you want to wear?’ He goes, ‘You know what? This is the only number I got, here you go. Here’s 12.’ And then I wore 12, and now nobody else at UT can wear 12.” (laughs)
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No. 13 Kelvin Harmon, receiver
“I wore 3 in college, so I wanted to keep the three in. Thirteen is a good number.”
Not bad luck wearing 13?
“I don’t really believe in bad luck.”
No. 15 Steven Sims Jr., receiver
“That’s the number I got here, so I just kept it. I like single-digit numbers more than any other number. Nah, I’m not tripping over having 15.”
No. 17 Terry McLaurin, receiver
“I picked 17. I wanted 83 (his number at Ohio State), but Brian Quick had that. I had some options, 80 or 17. If you want some meaning behind the choice, 83 plus 17 equals 100. Trying to get my 100 (yards) every time I’m on the field. I think I’ll probably keep 17. I feel like I’ve earned my stripes here with 17. I’m looking for a new journey. Mr. (Doug) Williams was a great number 17. I tell him every day I’m just trying to do his number right.”
No. 18 Trey Quinn, receiver
“I grew up wearing 18 because I was a Peyton Manning fan. It kind of just stuck. I wore it as a kid.”
No. 20 Landon Collins, safety
“The story behind No. 20 is, because (for previous teams) I came in as 21 in honor of the late, great, Sean Taylor, who had been here and passed away. Rest in peace. Just to honor him, wearing the number right next to his. It still keeps me close, but I’ll still be that 21 at heart.”
No. 22 Deshazor Everett, safety
“They just gave it to me when I got picked up after getting cut by Tampa, but it has some significance, too. My birthday’s the 22nd, my son’s birthday is the 22nd, my grandmother passed on the 22nd, just small things like that.”
No. 23 Quinton Dunbar, cornerback
“I like Michael Jordan. He’s always been an inspiration to me, a person I admire.”
No. 24 Josh Norman, cornerback
“It was given to me. My whole life, I tried picking another number, and this one has just stuck. At the end of the day, it’s just what I came up with. It chose me, I didn’t choose it.”
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What number would you pick if you could?
“Six maybe. Yeah, I mean, it’s something my family had, but I’m so fond of 24 now, I don’t see it going anywhere.”
Well, it’s kind of four 6s put together, so it kind of works out.
“I mean, yeah, if you look at it that way.”
No. 25 Chris Thompson, running back
“Reggie Bush is the reason I wanted 25, that’s the truth. He was one of my favorite running backs ever. Well, No. 2 to LaDainian Tomlinson. Reggie had 25 (in the NFL) so I wanted it. To me, he was a very dynamic running back and wasn’t that big either. He’s a great pass catcher, good route runner and obviously a really good running back. That’s how I always wanted my game to be.”
No. 26 Adrian Peterson, running back
(Peterson famously wore 28 in prior stops, but that’s not an option here thanks to the team unofficially retiring Darrell Green’s number)
“It was the best number available. Then when I looked at it (I realized) it was the number I wore when I was in Little League. It turned out to be pretty cool going back to a number I wore.
“Played ball in East Texas. The best team always went to Texarkana to play in this tournament. We played teams from Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas. Two years in a row I went with this team. The first year, I was the MVP that year, it was clear, but they gave the award to the other running back because he was part of the team throughout the season. It just broke my heart because it was obvious. Everyone knew. The second year we’re back and we won again, I got the MVP that year.”
They eventually gave you proper respect.
“They gave proper respect, the second go-round.”
No. 30 Troy Apke, safety
“Dirty 30!”
No. 31 Fabian Moreau, cornerback
“It was just given to me. But, 31. The number of teams that didn’t pick me. How about that?”
No. 32 Jimmy Moreland, cornerback
“It was the lowest number available, but I wanted 32. Tyrann Mathieu wears 32. I always watched him in college when everyone called him ‘Honey Badger.’ I took a lot from his game in college. I just wanted to be a stingy defender like him. Magic Johnson wore 32. Everyone goes back to see who wore their number.”
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No. 34 Wendell Smallwood, running back
“I don’t have a story behind mine. I just got here two days ago, and that’s the number they got for me. Thirty-four, I mean B-Marshall had it, and I was in Philly with him, and I know what kind of guy he is, so I said the other day, I’ll hold it down for you.”
No. 35 Montae Nicholson, safety
“Thirty-five because I was 34 when I got here, and I had to change my number, and 35 was the best option available (laughter). Oh, yeah (it has significance now), I’d like to keep my number, this would really be my third number while playing football. It means a lot to me now, so I plan on keeping it. I’m trying to keep it even if, you know, I’m not here.”
No. 40 Josh Harvey-Clemons, inside linebacker
“It was really just assigned to me when I got here, and I really didn’t try to change it or want to change it. I feel like it just grew on me, and I started to like it.”
Why’d you start liking it?
“Because most linebackers have a 50 number, and stuff like that, and I was always told, don’t let the number make you, make the number, so it just grew on me.”
No. 45 Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, cornerback
“I came in as a five-star athlete, and I chose to go to a black college. When I got there, I thought I could pick my number, so as a freshman, they have a dirty clothes hamper in black college. They dig in the dirty clothes hamper and throw you a number. So when they threw me 45, I balled it up and threw it back at him. I said, ‘Nah, we ain’t getting down like that.’ He said, ‘I’m a tell you right now family, you gonna make a decision here and wear that 45.’ I was a true freshman, and I stuck with it.”
No. 51 Shaun Dion Hamilton, inside linebacker
“They just gave it to me. I didn’t have no choice, there wasn’t really no numbers available. I like 51. I didn’t want to get 52, because you know, people always get 52 because of Ray Lewis. I love Ray Lewis, but you see so many people get it, it’s kind of like how so many people get 23 in basketball, so I’m not a big fan.”
No. 52 Ryan Anderson, outside linebacker
“I got 52 because someone said somebody had the number I want and didn’t want to sell it to me, which was not true, so I ended up with 52. The two numbers I wanted were 46 and 55. I wore 46 in high school and the Alabama-Mississippi game. And I always just liked 55, and a number I said I’d wear if I make it to the NFL. I just like that number. I really don’t care to switch it now.”
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No. 53 Jon Bostic, inside linebacker
“When I got here that’s just what I had. That’s the number they gave me.”
No. 55 Cole Holcomb, inside linebacker
“It was either that or 50, and I like 5-5, it was my uncle’s number in high school. It couldn’t be 34, that was my pops’ number.”
No. 57 Nick Sundberg, long snapper
“I showed up, and it was in my locker. It’s pretty simple.”
After all these years, there’s nothing special about it?
“Nope, they just gave it to me. I’d never worn it before here. It was what was available when I showed up, and what I’ve worn ever since.”
No. 58 Cassanova McKinzy, outside linebacker
“I didn’t pick it, but I like the number. I watch a lot of film of Von Miller (Broncos No. 58) and DeMarcus Ware (not a 58). Those are my two main guys. I learned a lot from those two guys.”
No. 64 Ross Pierschbacher, offensive lineman
“Me and Wes changed numbers because the 60s are more of an interior linemen number, so that was requested for us to do that. So just to make everyone happy.”
No. 66 Tony Bergstrom, offensive lineman
“I think I came in, and they said, ‘What’s the fattest number we have?’ And they thought, ‘66, that’s a good fat number.’ (laughing)”
That conversation did not happen.
(laughs) “No, I really have no idea about 66. That was just one I got when I got here. I kinda figured I started out at 70, then I went to 68 with Houston, and then I went to 67, and then the next logical number was 66. I’m sure they thought that, so I’m sure that was their thought.”
No. 67 Wes Martin, offensive lineman
“Well, my jersey number was assigned. I think I wore No. 78 in pee wee, when I was in like third or fourth grade.”
You switched numbers from the last time we spoke. Why’d you decide to switch?
“It was just felt that (67) was a better interior linemen number. If you just look around the league, it’s definitely more common being an interior guy in the 60s or 50s, and your tackles are pretty commonly in the 70s. I just got 67, there really was no picking to it.”
No. 72 Donald Penn, offensive lineman
“Yeah, I turned back to my old number. I started wearing 72 when I was in high school because I used to grow up, and every lineman’s dream was to carry the football like (William) ‘Refrigerator’ Perry, carry the football and score touchdowns. That’s why I wore 72 in college, high school, and when I got to the league, somebody had 72, so I went with 70 in Tampa and wore that for eight years. I had a chance to get 72 back in Oakland, so I went back to it, and cause it was my original. Now, I’m back to 72 (after initially getting 79 in D.C.), so ‘Refrigerator’ Perry got a lot to do with it.”
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No. 73 Chase Roullier, offensive lineman
“Actually, I was 74 in high school, and they didn’t have that available in college, so I was 73. That’s really all there is to it.”
No. 74 Geron Christian, offensive lineman
“I mean, I’ve just had it since high school. Kinda given it, I think my 11th-grade year, I had 75, and then that team was pretty sorry, so then I had went to a little private school. And then I had just switched from 75 to 74.”
Why 74?
“It looked good. (chuckles) I brought it with me to college, and then it kinda had meaning after that, because I was the 74th pick in the (2018) draft.”
No. 75 Brandon Scherff, offensive lineman
“It greeted me when I got here.”
No special meaning whatsoever?
“Nope.”
No. 76 Morgan Moses, offensive lineman
“I had the option to change my jersey from No. 76 when I was first drafted by Washington in 2014. It wasn’t the prettiest number, but the number I really wanted — No. 78, the number I wore at the University of Virginia — was Kory Lichtensteiger’s at that time.
“I had the option of No. 72 and a few numbers in the 60s, but (laughter) I’ve never seen a tackle wear 60 before.”
Chris Samuels, Washington’s six-time Pro Bowl left tackle, wore 60 during his 10 seasons in D.C., from 2000 to 2009.
“Over years and over time of retooling myself and fixing myself on and off the field, I made that number something special to me. It’s something that I fine-tuned. That was the number they gave me, and I was like, ‘Hey, look, I’m gonna make it stick.’ I just rolled with and made it happen.”
No. 77 Ereck Flowers, offensive lineman
“It was the only number available that I liked.”
No. 79 was his other option.
“I’ve always worn 74 or 75.”
No. 85 Vernon Davis, tight end
“In high school, I chose No. 18, because that’s how old I would be when I left high school, so I kept that throughout college, but when I got to the league I really had no choice of what number I got. They kind of had two numbers, so I just said, ‘Give me one.’”
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So 85 doesn’t mean anything at all?
“No, not at all.”
No. 86 Jordan Reed, tight end
“That’s what they gave me rookie year, and I stuck with it. When I first got it, I loved it. And I always love that number. That number is never changing.”
No. 87 Jeremy Sprinkle, tight end
“They just gave me my number. Nothing special about it, they just gave it to me.”
Would you change it if you had the option?
“Probably not. I’ll just keep it.”
No. 90 Montez Sweat, outside linebacker
“It was really just my college number was 9, and I wanted to get the closest thing to it, so I added a 0. That’s the easiest thing to do.”
No. 91 Ryan Kerrigan, outside linebacker
“I chose it because when I first came here I was given 53. I saw some pictures of myself in that number and I didn’t really like the way it looked. Being a 90s number my whole college career, I just associated that with being a pass-rusher. Right when 91 became available during training camp of my rookie year, I asked to switch. I wore it in the Senior Bowl so it wasn’t completely foreign to me. It was more so to get out of the other jersey, and 91 has grown on me.”
Looking at the numbers, 91 is more sleek while 53 is wider. That the issue?
“Yeah, that might be part of it. I don’t know. It just wasn’t me.”
No. 93 Jonathan Allen, defensive lineman
“I was in high school, never played D-line in my life, and I was a big Jevon Kearse, Julius Peppers fan, and I’m pretty sure Julius Peppers wore 93. (He wore 90 in Carolina and 56 in Green Bay.) So that’s why I went with it, and I’ve had it ever since.”
No. 94 Daron Payne, defensive lineman
“I had it in high school. Shit, there ain’t no reason behind it, they gave it to me, and I just rocked with it. I was waiting on that Preston (Smith, who signed with Green Bay as a free agent) to leave. He wouldn’t give it to me, so I had to wait.” (laughs)
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No. 97 Tim Settle, defensive lineman
“I was born in ’97, so I look at as I’m reppin’ the ’97 babies. I first got it when I was in college, I had got it for two years, then I switched numbers. Being more realistic, there’s a lot of meaning, I mean, not a lot of meaning behind it, but it’s my birth year, and I got it tatted on me.”
No. 98 Matt Ioannidis, defensive lineman
“No special meaning behind it.”
No. 99 Caleb Brantley, defensive lineman
“I don’t have no story behind it. My college number was 57, but 99 is just the best number for the D-line, to be honest.”
Editor’s note: Because of his injury, Derrius Guice wasn’t available to tell us why he wears No. 29
(Top photo of Vernon Davis: Daniel Kucin Jr. / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
