Number 10 and the Three Dolphins Who Wore It Best

Where does Tyreek Hill rank in a group that includes long-time contributors like Olindo Mare and Don Strock?

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) runs with the ball after a catch during the second half against the Dallas Cowboys at Hard Rock Stadium last season. / Jasen Vinlove-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 10.

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, S Reshad Jones at 20, WR/KR Ted Ginn Jr., WR Rishard Matthews at 18, WR Jaylen Waddle at 17, QB David Woodley at 16, WR Davone Bess at 15, and WR Jarvis Landry at 14, QB Dan Marino at 13, QB Bob Griese at 12, and QB/RB/TE Jim Jensen at 11.

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 10 for at least one regular season game:

QB George Wilson Jr. (1966), QB George Mira (1971), QB Don Strock (1974-87), K Pete Stoyanovich (1989-95), K Olindo Mare (1997-2006), QB Trent Green (2007), QB Chad Pennington (2008-10), WR Clyde Gates (2011), WR Jabar Gaffney (2012), WR Brandon Gibson (2013-14), WR Kenny Stills (2015-18), WR Malcolm Perry (2020), WR Tyreek Hill (2022-23)

The breakdown of 10 with the Dolphins

As we get to number 10, we've got 13 players in contention, though six of them clearly stand out.• Don Strock spent 14 of his 15-year NFL career with the Dolphins and played 163 games with 20 starts. He had an impressive 14-6 record as a starter and went 5-2 in 1978 to help Miami make the playoffs, but it's his brilliant performance in the 1981 playoff epic against San Diego that always will be remembered. Pete Stoyanovich was an eighth-round pick in 1989 who spent the first seven of his 12-year career in Miami. He was an All-Pro in 1992 when he made 30 of 37 field goals and ended up making 79.3 percent of his field goal attempts for the Dolphins. Olindo Mare had an even longer stay in Miami than Stoyanovich, and he made 80.9 percent of his field goals. Mare was an All-Pro and Pro Bowl selection in 1999 when he set a team record and led the NFL with 39 field goals and 46 attempts. Chad Pennington had one of the best individual seasons for a Dolphins player after he arrived in 2008 when he completed an NFL-high 67.4 percent of his passes with 19 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. Unfortunately, injuries became the story after that. He was knocked out with a shoulder injury in the third game of the 2009 season and suffered the same fate in his only appearance in 2010 after the Dolphins decided to go with Chad Henne as their starter. Kenny Stills arrived in a trade with New Orleans and went on to start 55 of his 63 games with Miami. In four seasons, he averaged 41 catches, with a high of 58 for 847 yards and six touchdowns in 2017. The previous year, he played a role in the Dolphins making the playoffs when he had a career-high nine touchdown receptions. Stills is headed into his second season with the Houston Texans after being included in a huge deal involving tackle Laremy Tunsil. Tyreek Hill has played only two seasons with the Dolphins, but they've been the most productive for any wide receiver in franchise history and he's been team MVP each time. So what he lacks in longevity, he makes up for with quality.

The top three Dolphins players with number 10

1. WR Tyreek Hill

2. K Olindo Mare

3. QB Don Strock

Dolphins 10's among the NFL's all-time best

Fran Tarkenton is the only modern-era Hall of Famer who wore 10, though he may eventually be joined by Eli Manning. Hill definitely is on a Hall of Fame track right now and we can argue whether it's Hill or DeAndre Hopkins who's the best active player at 10. What we'll say about Hill is that he's easily in the top 10, maybe in the top five, and might have a chance at number 1 before his career is over.