Number 80 and the Three Dolphins Who Wore It Best

Tight ends dominated this number, but was it wide receiver Irving Fryar who was the top performer?

Tight end Anthony Fasano (80) runs after catching a pass against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving day at Cowboys Stadium in 2011. / Tim Heitman-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 80.

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, and O.J. McDuffie at 81.

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 80 for at least one regular season game for the Dolphins:

DE-LB Ed Cooke (1966-67), DE-DT Bob Joswick (1968-69), TE Marv Fleming (1970-74), TE Jim McFarland (1975), TE Loaird McCreary (1976-78), TE Joe Rose (1980-85), TE Lawrence Sampleton (1987), TE Ferrell Edmunds (1988-92), WR Irving Fryar (1993-95), WR Fred Barnett (1996-97), WR Brett Perriman (1997), WR Iheanyi Uwaezuoke (1998), WR Kirby Dar Dar (1998), WR Horace Copeland (1998), WR Tony Martin (1999-2000), WR James McKnight (2001-03), WR David Boston (2005), TE Aaron Halterman (2007), TE Anthony Fasano (2008-12, 2017), TE Dion Sims (2013-16), WR Danny Amendola (2018), TE Adam Shaheen (2020-21), TE Tanner Conner (2023)

The debate on the best 80 on the Dolphins

It's the tight ends who have done the most with the number 80 with the Dolphins, though it's tough to pick a clear standout. Marv Fleming was the starting tight end on the Dolphins' Super Bowl teams of the 1970s and his role was that of a blocker for the team's devastating running game. Ferrell Edmunds started 57 games in his five seasons in Miami and made the Pro Bowl twice, making him the only Dolphins player at that position selected to the all-star game. Wide receiver Irving Fryar spent only three seasons in Miami but made them count, topping 1,000 receiving yards twice and making the Pro Bowl the same number of times. Anthony Fasano was an important player in the Dolphins' run to the AFC East title in 2008 as he led the team with seven receiving touchdowns. Fasano spent six of his 12 NFL seasons and started 83 games for Miami. Before he went on to a long career as Dolphins radio analyst and talk show host, Joe Rose appeared in 83 games for Miami and had two touchdowns in the classic 1981 playoff game against the San Diego Chargers.

The top three Dolphins players with number 80

1. WR Irving Fryar

2. TE Anthony Fasano

3. TE Ferrell Edmunds

Dolphins 80's among the NFL's all-time best

There are 10 players already in the Hall of Fame, with Andre Johnson joining the list this summer after being inducted this year. Fryar might be a top 20 player among those who wore 80, but he played only three of his 17 NFL seasons with Miami.