Unorthodox NFL Jersey Numbers

SI Staff | May 8, 2006

Unorthodox NFL Jersey Numbers

Paul Hornung

Art Shay/SI

Before becoming a running back with the Packers, Hornung was a star quarterback at Notre Dame, and Green Bay gave the "Golden Boy" the same Number 5 he made famous with the Irish. The NFL didn't implement rules requiring numbers for specific positions until the 1970s.

Don Hutson

AP

This eight-time NFL receiving champion wore Number 14 as he terrorized defenses from 1935 to 1945.

Lance Alworth

Neil Leifer/SI

The dynamic receiver lit up the AFL and NFL wearing what was then an uncharacteristic Number 19 jersey.

Bronco Nagurski

AP

A powerful rusher and a bone-crushing linebacker, Nagurski dominated in the 1930s while sporting Number 3.

Steve Van Buren

Courtesy of Philadelphia Eagles

In his Number 15 jersey, Van Buren won four rushing titles and helped the Eagles rule the NFL in the late 1940s.

Frank Gifford

Hy Peskin/SI

Gifford, Number 16, was a brilliant running back, flanker and defensive back for the Giants, and his excellence on the field was matched by his notoriety off it.

Bobby Layne

Hy Peskin/SI

A quarterback who wore Number 22, Layne helped the Lions win three titles before he retired in 1962 holding most of the all-time passing records.

Sammy Baugh

AP

"Slingin' Sammy" was the premier quarterback of his era (1937-1952) but wore what we now consider a running back number: 33.

Keyshawn Johnson

Peter Read Miller/SI

When Keyshawn arrived in Jets camp in 1996, all the 80s were taken by veterans, so he was allowed to wear 19. He could have switched later to a more traditional number but chose to stand out with his lower number.