Number 19 and the Three Dolphins Who Wore It Best

It's Ted Ginn Jrl, Jakeem Grant and Brandon Marshall at the top

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jakeem Grant (19) looks on from the field prior the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Hard Rock Stadium in 2021. / Sam Navarro-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 19.

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, and S Reshad Jones at 20.

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 19 for at least one regular season game:

DB Reyna Thompson (1986), QB Scott Mitchell (1990-93), QB Bernie Kosar (1994-96), WR Nate Jacquet (1998), WR Larry Shannon (1998-99), WR Ted Ginn Jr. (2007-09), WR Brandon Marshall (2010-11), WR Legedu Naanee (2012), WR Armon Binns (2012-13), WR Jakeem Grant (2016-21), QB Skylar Thompson (2022)

The breakdown of 19 with the Dolphins

As we get into the teens, the total of players for each number will be smaller, and so it is with 19. There have been some contributors, though. Scott Mitchell was a fourth-round pick in 1990 who had to step into action in 1993 after Dan Marino tore his Achilles tendon in an October game at Cleveland. Though his final numbers that year were nothing special (3-4 record, 12 TDs, 8 INTs), it was enough to earn him a big contract from the Detroit Lions. He ended up playing 11 seasons in the Dolphins and had one big year, with the Lions in 1995 when he had 32 touchdowns against 12 interceptions. The selection of Ginn with the ninth overall pick in the 2007 draft drew a lot of ridicule, particularly because of Cam Cameron's "Ginn family" speech, but the fact remains that Ginn is still in the NFL 13 years later. Ginn started 35 games for Miami and averaged 43 catches per season, not to mention his three kick returns for touchdowns, including two in a memorable 2009 game against the Jets. Brandon Marshall was highly productive, though highly controversial in his two-year stint with the Dolphins. He topped 1,000 receiving yards in both 2010 and 2011 and made the Pro Bowl the second year when he had 1,214 yards and six touchdowns. But his production didn't stop the Dolphins from trading him for two third-round picks, two years after they acquired him for two second-round picks. Jakeem Grant was a big-play returner after joining the Dolphins as a sixth-round pick in 2016, with three punt returns and two kickoff returns for touchdowns. His time in Miami ended in 2021 when he was traded to the Chicago Bears, and Grant's comeback attempt this year after spending the last two seasons on IR hit a snag when the Atlanta Falcons put him on injured reserve this week. Former University of Miami legend Bernie Kosar closed out his 12-year NFL career with three seasons with the Dolphins, though he played only 14 games with two starts. He lost both of them. Skylar Thompson's game participation is listed only as 2022 because he didn't play a down last season.

The top three Dolphins players with number 19

1. WR-KR Ted Ginn Jr.

2. WR Brandon Marshall

3. WR-KR Jakeem Grant

Dolphins 19's among the NFL's all-time best

Johnny Unitas and Lance Alworth are the two Hall of Famers who wore 19 and they stand head and shoulder above anybody else at that number. With his long and successful career with the Cleveland Browns, Kosar comes in fourth on Pro Football Reference's Approximate Value ranking for 19's and it might surprise many Dolphins fans that Ginn was sixth, the result of his 14-year career that included five other teams after he left Miami.