Number 27 and the Three Dolphins Who Wore It Best

It's T-Buck and the Running Backs

Miami Dolphins running back Lorenzo Hampton carries the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Tampa Stadium during the 1988 season. / RVR Photos-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 27.

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, and CB Don McNeal at 28.

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 27 for at least one regular season game:

RB Gary Tucker (1968), RB Gary Davis (1976-79), RB Lorenzo Hampton (1985-89), S Stevon Moore (1990), CB David Pool (1994), CB Terrell Buckley (1995-99, 2003), S Arturo Freeman (2000-02), CB Will Poole (2004-05), S Shirdonya Mitchell (2006), S Lamont Thompson (2007), RB Samkon Gado (2007), CB Benny Sapp (2010-11), S Jimmy Wilson (2012-14), RB Raheem Mostert (2015), RB LaMichael James (2015), S Shamiel Gary (2015), S Maurice Smith (2017), RB Kalen Ballage (2019), FB Chandler Cox (2020), CB Justin Coleman (2021), CB Keion Crossen (2022)

The breakdown of 27 with the Dolphins

The top spot for 27 has to go to cornerback Terrell Buckley, who had 24 interceptions in 96 career games with the Dolphins. Buckley had a career-high eight interceptions in 1998 and led the NFL with 164 interception return yards in 1996 when he had six picks. Gary Davis was a sixth-round pick who played four seasons with the Dolphins, mostly as a backup. His best season was in 1977 when he started six games and rushed for 533 yards and two touchdowns. Lorenzo Hampton was a first-round pick in 1985 who played 70 games with 34 starts in his five NFL seasons, all with Miami. His best season came in 1986 when he rushed for 830 yards and scored 12 touchdowns, including three in a 45-3 Monday night victory against the New York Jets. Jimmy Wilson started 20 games, including 13 in 2014, in his final three seasons with the Dolphins after wearing 25 as a rookie in 2011. Arturo Freeman played a total of five seasons with the Dolphins, the first three wearing 27 and the last two with 20. Mostert wore 27 for his one game for the Dolphins in 2015 but will be wearing 31 in his return in 2022..Ballage switched to 27 last year after wearing 33 as a rookie in 2018.

The top three Dolphins players with number 27

1. CB Terrell Buckley

2. RB Lorenzo Hampton

3. RB Gary Davis

Dolphins 27's among the NFL's all-time best

With his 50 career interceptions and six touchdowns, Buckley probably belongs in the top 10 among players to wear 27. Hall of Fame safety Steve Atwater and running back Eddie George lead the way here.