Raven Country

Marquise Brown Switches to No. 5 — Last Worn By Joe Flacco

Wide receiver takes advantage of rule change.

Todd Karpovich

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — There will be a new No. 5 on the Ravens.

Marquise Brown is switching his number from No. 15 to No. 5 as "Symbol of God's Grace." 

The last Ravens player to wear No. 5 was Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco.

Flacco spent 11 seasons in Baltimore and owns almost every career statistic for a quarterback in Ravens history. He also led the team to three AFC Championship Games and had just one losing season.

"Joe Flacco is a great talent," coach John Harbaugh said. "He's an even better person. He's the best quarterback in the history of the Ravens, without question. That's not even because I'm biased – it's just a fact."

Flacco is best remembered for leading the Ravens to their second championship in the 2012-2013 season when he was named MVP of Super Bowl XLVII. Flacco, the 18th overall pick in the 2008 draft, led Baltimore to the playoffs in each of his first five seasons and went 10-5 as a starter in the postseason.

In 2019, Flacco suffered a hip injury in Week 9 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, opening the door for Lamar Jackson to take over the starter. Jackson never relinquished the job even when Flacco was cleared to play. 

Now, Brown will wear his number and perhaps became the second No. 5 to win a Super Bowl. Brown is a speedy downfield threat that has played effectively since being drafted from Oklahoma. Over two seasons, he caught 104 passes for 1,353 yards with 15 touchdowns and is the Ravens No. 1 wide receiver.

The NFL adopted new rules that allow wide receivers, running backs, tight ends, linebackers, and defensive backs to wear a single-digit number.

The rule change, proposed by the Chiefs, also allows running backs, tight ends and wide receivers to wear any number from one to 49 as well as 80–89. Defensive backs and linebackers can also wear numbers 1–49.

The league's new, full number ranges are:

Quarterback, punter, kicker: 1–19

Running back: 1–49, 80–89

Wide Receivers: 1-49 and 80-89

Defensive back: 1–49

Linebacker: 1–59, 90–99

Offensive lineman: 50–79

Defensive lineman: 50–79, 90–99

Published
Todd Karpovich
TODD KARPOVICH

Twitter: @toddkarpovich Email: todd.karpovich@gmail.com Skype: todd.karpovich Todd Karpovich has been a contributor for ESPN, Forbes, the Associated Press, Lindy's, and The Baltimore Sun, among other media outlets nationwide. He is the co-author of “If These Walls Could Talk: Stories from the Baltimore Ravens Sideline, Locker Room, and Press Box,” “Skipper Supreme: Buck Showalter and the Baltimore Orioles,” and the author of “Manchester United (Europe's Best Soccer Clubs).” Karpovich, a Baltimore native, is a graduate of Calvert Hall College high school, Randolph-Macon College in Virginia, and has a Masters of Science from Towson University. 

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