Number 17 and the Three Dolphins Who Wore It Best

Has Jaylen Waddle already caught and surpassed Ryan Tannehill?

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (17) runs with the ball against the New York Jets during the second half at Hard Rock Stadium in 2023. / Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

The countdown to the start of the 2024 regular season has begun now that we're under 100 days away, so we'll honor every day the best players to wear the corresponding number for the Dolphins.

Today, we're at number 17.

The top players at each number so far have been DE Jason Taylor at 99, DT Jared Odrick at 98, DE Phillip Merling at 97, DT Paul Soliai at 96, DT Tim Bowens at 95, DT Randy Starks at 94,  DE Trace Armstrong at 93, LS John Denney at 92, DE Cameron Wake at 91, DE/OLB Marco Coleman at 90,  WR Nat Moore at 89, TE Keith Jackson at 88, TE Andre Tillman at 87, WR Oronde Gadsden at 86, LB Nick Buoniconti at 85, DE Bill Stanfill at 84, WR Mark Clayton at 83, WR Brian Hartline at 82, WR O.J. McDuffie at 81, WR Irving Fryar at 80, T Jon Giesler at 79, T Richmond Webb at 78, LB A.J. Duhe at 77, T Branden Albert at 76, DT Manny Fernandez at 75, T Mark Dennis at 74, NT Bob Baumhower at 73, T Terron Armstead at 72, T Todd Wade at 71, DE Kendall Langford at 70, G Keith Sims at 69, G Robert Hunt at 68, G Bob Kuechenberg at 67, G Larry Little at 66, OL Jeff Dellenbach at 65, G Ed Newman at 64, G Mark Dixon at 63, C Jim Langer at 62, C Tim Ruddy at 61, G Bert Weidner at 60, LB Doug Swift at 59, LB Kim Bokamper at 58, C Dwight Stephenson at 57, LB John Offerdahl at 56, LB Earnest Rhone at 55, LB Zach Thomas at 54, LB Bob Matheson at 53, LB Channing Crowder at 52, LB Bryan Cox at 51, LB Larry Gordon at 50, CB William Judson at 49, CB Gerald Small at 48, S Glenn Blackwood at 47, S Don Bessilieu at 46, CB Curtis Johnson at 45, CB Paul Lankford at 44, LB Andrew Van Ginkel at 43, WR Paul Warfield at 42, FB. Keith Byars at 41, S Dick Anderson at 40, FB Larry Csonka at 39, CB Calvin Jackson at 38, CB J.B. Brown at 37, FB Don Nottingham at 36, DB Walt Aikens at 35, RB Ricky Williams at 34, RB Karim Abdul-Jabbar at 33, RB Kenyan Drake at 32, and S Brock Marion at 31, RB Ron Davenport at 30, CB Sam Madison at 29, CB Don McNeal at 28, CB Terrell Buckley at 27, S Jarvis Williams at 26, CB Xavien Howard at 25, RB Delvin Williams at 24, CB Patrick Surtain at 23, RB Tony Nathan at 22, RB Jim Kiick at 21, S Reshad Jones at 20, WR/KR Ted Ginn Jr., and WR Rishard Matthews at 18.

As a reminder about the ground rules, the top three will be determined only by what the players did while wearing that uniform for the Dolphins.

Players who wore 17 for at least one regular season game:

P Mike Michel (1977), QB Ron Jaworski (1987-88), QB Steve DeBerg (1993), P John Kidd (1994-97), WR Todd Doxzon (1998), QB Cleo Lemon (2005-07), WR Brandon London (2008), QB Ryan Tannehill (2012-18), WR Allen Hurns (2019), WR Jaylen Waddle (2023)

The breakdown of 17 with the Dolphins

After having nine players wear number 18, we've got 10 who played wearing 17 and there are two who clearly stand out, Ryan Tannehill and the current jersey wearer, Jaylen Waddle. Ron Jaworski joined the Dolphins in August of 1987 to serve as Dan Marino's backup, but he ended attempting only 14 passes in 16 games with Miami before he signed with the Kansas City Chiefs as a Plan B free agent in 1989. Steve DeBerg joined the Dolphins in November 1993 as a 39-year-old after Dan Marino and Scott Mitchell both were injured and ended up starting four games that season. The Dolphins were 2-2 in those four games, though DeBerg threw more interceptions (7) than touchdown passes (6). Punter John Kidd joined the Dolphins midway through the 1994 season and appeared in 49 games over three-plus seasons. He led the NFL with a 46.3-yard average in 1996. Cleo Lemon came from San Diego in a trade for fellow QB A.J. Feeley and he was 1-7 as a starter in 13 appearances. His highlight, of course, was throwing a 64-yard game-winning touchdown pass to Greg Camarillo in overtime against the Baltimore Ravens for the Dolphins' only win of the 2007 season. Tannehill was the starting quarterback from the time he arrived as a first-round pick in 2012, but he compiled only a 42-46 record in his 88 starts and had a rather pedestrian 87.0 passer rating. Tannehill enjoyed a breakout season in 2019 after being traded to the Tennessee Titans, making his first Pro Bowl after compiling an NFL-high 117.5 passer rating. Waddle has had the best three-season start of any wide receiver in Dolphins history, setting an NFL rookie record with his 104 catches in 2021, leading the NFL in average per reception in 2022 and then recording a third straight 1,000-yard season in 2023.

The top three Dolphins players with number 17

1. WR Jaylen Waddle

2. QB Ryan Tannehill

3. P John Kidd

Dolphins 17's among the NFL's all-time best

Longtime Eagles wide receiver Harold Carmichael is the one Hall of Famer who wore 17, and maybe he'll be joined in a few years by Philip Rivers. Jaylen Waddle hasn't played long enough to merit all-time consideration for this number, but he's certainly off to a great start.