Countdown to Jaguars Football: No. 61 and Who Has Donned it Best

With only a few players wearing No. 61s in franchise history, who has stood out the most?

In fewer than 100 days, Jacksonville Jaguars will return ... at least as things stand today.

While there is still some uncertainty surrounding the start of the NFL season, the league office has made it clear that they are planning to kick the season off on Sept. 10 and then have every other team play on Sept. 13.

By going off that timeline, we are now just 61 days from watching the Jaguars take the field against the Indianapolis Colts for the first regular season game of 2020.

In an effort to countdown to the start of the season, we will now be going from 95 through 1 to determine the best players to don the teal, black, and white for the Jaguars at each specific number.

So when considering each player has worn the No. 61 since Jacksonville's first season in 1995, who has been the most impactful? Since the team's inception, here are the players who have worn the jersey number:

• Stefen Wisniewski: 2015 
• Dan Connolly: 2005-06 
• Emarlos Leroy: 1999

Since there are only three players on this list who have worn the number, there are only those players to choose from. With that said, we can still revisit the tenure of each's impact on the Jaguars during their tenure. 

So, who has been the best No, 61 in Jaguars history? We debate below.

No. 3: Dan Connolly

Dan Connolly would eventually be known for being a key peice of the New England Patriots' offense thanks to his consistency at left guard from 2009 through 2014, but before then he was a member of the Jaguars for several seasons. Signing with the Jaguars in 2005 as an undrafted free agent out of Southeast Missouri State, Connolly made the 53-man roster as a rookie. 

Connolly was placed on injured reserve in 2006 before being waived in September 2007, leading to him appearing in just four games as Jaguar. He found great success in his career later on, but his time with the Jaguars was limited. 

No. 2: Emarlos Leroy

A sixth-round (No. 182 overall) pick by the Jaguars out of Georgia in the 1999 NFL Draft, Emarlos Leroy is another player who had a short tenure with Jacksonville. Leroy was a backup for the Jaguars' famed 1999 team which finished with the AFC's top seed, appearing in 13 games for the squad that eventually appeared in the AFC Championship.

After appearing in two playoff games in 1999, Leroy appeared in nine games and started one at defensive tackle in 2000. Leroy would be released in May 2001 after recording six tackles in two seasons for the team. 

No. 1: Stefen Wisniewski

The only player on this list to start more than one game for the Jaguars, former center Stefen Wisniewski is the No. 1 ranked player by default. Wisniewski did enter Jacksonville with somewhat high expectations following 61 starts over four years in Oakland, a period in which he established himself as one of the league's most underrated lineman. 

Wisniewski spent just one season with the Jaguars, though, starting 16 games at center for the 2015 squad which saw Blake Bortles, Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns produce big numbers. Following his time with the Jaguars, Wisniewski was on two Super Bowl teams with the Philadelphia Eagles (2017) and Kansas City Chiefs (2019). He wasn't with the Jaguars long, but he was a solid player who started an entire season, making him the most accomplished No. 61 in team history.