Number 38 and the Three Dolphins Who Wore It Best

No clear standout in a group dominated by one-and-done players

Miami Dolphins cornerback Ethan Bonner (38) defends a pass against the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Stadium during the 2023 preseason. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-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 38.

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, and FB Larry Csonka at 39.

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 38 for at least one regular season game:

RB Leroy Harris (1977-78), RB Bob Torrey (1979), RB Terry Robiskie (1980-81), RB Clarence Bailey (1987), CB Bruce Plummer (1998), RB Willard Reaves (1989), DB Calvin Jackson (1994-99), DB Kevin Williams (2000), DB Quintin Williams (2004), RB Patrick Cobbs (2006-10), RB Richard Medlin (2011), CB Julian Posey (2012), DB Don Jones (2014), CB Chimdi Chekwa (2016), FB De'Veon Smith (2017), RB Brandon Bolden (2018), FB Chandler Cox (2019); CB Javaris Davis (2021), CB Ethan Bonner (2023)

The breakdown of 38 with the Dolphins

Unlike 39, the Dolphins have had a lot of players wear 38, but no one who had anywhere near the impact of the only 39, Larry Csonka. Leroy Harris was a fifth-round pick in 1977 who played two seasons for the Dolphins and started 16 of his 26 games. He was a solid contributor, with 417 and 512 rushing yards in his two seasons, and his 77-yard run against Baltimore as a rookie stood as the Dolphins' franchise record until Keith Byars matched it on Thanksgiving Day in 1993. Calvin Jackson joined the Dolphins in 1994 as a rookie free agent out of Auburn, but he ended up starting 56 games at cornerback and safety over his final four seasons with Miami. His best season came in 1996 when he had three interceptions. Patrick Cobbs was a special teams player and backup at running for five seasons after arriving as a rookie free agent in 2006. His career highlight was an 80-yard touchdown catch from Chad Pennington at Houston in 2008 after the Dolphins ran a flea-flicker out of the Wildcat formation. Brandon Bolden's two rushing touchdowns for the Dolphins in 2018 came in the "Miracle in Miami" game against New England, the team for which he played his first six NFL seasons and where he returned in 2019. Bolden recently opted out of the 2020 season. Chandler Cox started three of the 13 games he played as a rookie seventh-round pick in 2019, but was released after two seasons. Ethan Bonner got some late-season action as a rookie as an undrafted free agent, but will be switching to 27 in 2024.

The top three Dolphins players with number 38

1. DB Calvin Jackson

2. RB Patrick Cobbs

3. RB Leroy Harris

Dolphins 38's among the NFL's all-time best

Arnie Herbert is the only Hall of Famer who wore 38, and the other top players with that number would include longtime Colts DB Eugene Daniel and Saints and Washington running back George Rogers. Nobody from the Dolphins would rank in the top 20.