Number 51 and the Three Dolphins Who Wore It Best

Tough call between Bryan Cox and Mike Pouncey for the top spot at a productive number

Miami Dolphins linebacker Bryan Cox in action against the New England Patriots at Foxboro Stadium in 1995. / 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 51.

The top players at each number so far have been Jason Taylor at 99, Jared Odrick at 98, Phillip Merling at 97, Paul Soliai at 96, Tim Bowens at 95, Randy Starks at 94,  Trace Armstrong at 93, John Denney at 92, Cameron Wake at 91, Marco Coleman at 90,  Nat Moore at 89, Keith Jackson at 88, Andre Tillman at 87, Oronde Gadsden at 86, Nick Buoniconti at 85, Bill Stanfill at 84, Mark Clayton at 83, Brian Hartline at 82, O.J. McDuffie at 81, Irving Fryar at 80, Jon Giesler at 79, Richmond Webb at 78, A.J. Duhe at 77, Branden Albert at 76, Manny Fernandez at 75, Mark Dennis at 74, Bob Baumhower at 73, Terron Armstead at 72, Todd Wade at 71, Kendall Langford at 70, Keith Sims at 69, Robert Hunt at 68, Bob Kuechenberg at 67, Larry Little at 66, Jeff Dellenbach at 65, Ed Newman at 64, Mark Dixon at 63, Jim Langer at 62, Tim Ruddy at 61, Bert Weidner at 60, Doug Swift at 59, Kim Bokamper at 58, Dwight Stephenson at 57, John Offerdahl at 56, Earnest Rhone at 55, Zach Thomas at 54, Bob Matheson at 53, and Channing Crowder at 52.

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 51 for at least one regular season game:

LB Jerry Hopkins (1967), LB Ed Weisacosky (1968-70), LB Larry Ball (1972-74), LB Rodrigo Barnes (1975), LB Andy Selfridge (1976), LB Mike Dennery (1976), LB Rusty Chambers (1976-80), LB Mark Brown (1983-88), LB Greg Clark (1989), LB Bryan Cox (1991-95), LB Anthony Harris (1996-99), LB Tommy Hendricks (2000-03), LB Tony Bua (2004), LB Jason Glenn (2005), LB Mark Washington (2007), LB Akin Ayodele (2008-09), LB Tim Dobbins (2010), C-G Mike Pouncey (2011-17), LB Jams Crawford (2019); LB Kamu Grugier-Hill (2020), DB Trill Williams (2021), LB David Long Jr. (2023)

The breakdown of 51 with the Dolphins

About halfway through this project, we have perhaps the greatest battle for top player at a number so far. This one is between a pair of three-time Pro Bowl selections, Bryan Cox and Mike Pouncey. Cox was a fifth-round pick out of Western Illinois in 1991 and he made the Pro Bowl three times in his five seasons in Miami before he left as a free agent. Cox was a fiery leader who also was very productive — he had more than 100 tackles his last four seasons with the Dolphins, including a career-high 127 in 1992 when he also led the team in sacks with 14. Pouncey was a first-round pick in 2011 and he became an immediate starter at center. After making the Pro Bowl at center in 2013, he repeated the honor but this time at right guard in 2014 before being a Pro Bowl center again in 2015. Pouncey started all 93 games he played for the Dolphins before being released in 2018. Pouncey is the last player to wear 51 for the Dolphins in consecutive seasons. Among others worthy of top three consideration for number 51 is Rusty Chambers, a three-year starter who led the Dolphins in tackles in 1978 and 1979 before his life tragically was cut short in July 1981 when he was killed in a car accident at the age of 27. Mark Brown started 60 games at linebacker in six seasons with the Dolphins after being a ninth-round draft pick in 1983; he had five sacks in 1986 and two interceptions in 1988. Akin Ayodele started 28 games in two seasons with Miami after coming over in a trade with Dallas, and helped the Dolphins win the 2008 AFC East title by finishing with 75 tackles and two interceptions. David Long Jr. wore 51 last season but switched to 11 in his second year with Miami.

The top three Dolphins players with number 51

1. LB Bryan Cox

2. C-G Mike Pouncey

3. LB Rusty Chambers

Dolphins 51's among the NFL's all-time best

Cox., who played seven more seasons after leaving Miami but never made the Pro Bowl again, is tied for 15th in Approximate Value among all players since 1960 to wear 51, per Pro Football Reference. The best "51" of all time probably would be acknowledge most as being Dick Butkus, with the two other Hall of Famers with that number being Sam Mills and Jim Ringo.