MiamiDolphins.com Cornerback Byron Maxwell experienced his greatest success in the NFL in Seattle when he wore number 41, and that’s what he’s going back to after joining the Dolphins this offseason. Maxwell wore 31 with the Philadelphia Eagles last season after joining the team in the offseason as a free agent. With the start of the offseason program, the Dolphins handed out jersey numbers to all of their newcomers and there also were some number changes among returning players, as almost always happens every spring. The two most noteworthy number changes among returning players saw cornerback Jamar Taylor go from 22 to 21 and running back Damien Williams go from 34 to 26. The change in both cases traces back to college, where Taylor wore 21 (along with 5) at Boise State and Williams wore 26 at Oklahoma. Those numbers were not available when Taylor and Williams joined the Dolphins. Additionally, wide receiver Matt Hazel went from 83 to 15; defensive end Damontre Moore went from 57 to 98; and linebacker Terrell Manning went from 47 to 59. The other player who joined Maxwell in going to Miami as a result of the trade with the Eagles was linebacker Kiko Alonso, and he also will undergo a number change with the Dolphins. After wearing 50 with the Eagles and the Buffalo Bills before that, Alonso will be wearing number 47 in Miami. Defensive end Mario Williams will continue to wear the number 94 he wore in Buffalo after wearing the number 90 with the Houston Texans at the start of his NFL career. Veteran defensive tackle Earl Mitchell already wears number 90 for the Dolphins. Here are the jersey numbers of all the Dolphins players acquired this offseason: WR Christion Jones — 1 QB Zac Dysert — 2 WR Griff Whalen — 18 WR Tyler Murphy — 19 S Isa Abdul-Quddus — 24 RB Daniel Thomas — 30 CB Damarr Aultman — 37 CB Chimdi Chekwa — 38 CB Byron Maxwell — 41 LB Kiko Alonso — 47 TE MarQueis Gray — 48 DE Andre Branch — 50 G Kraig Urbik — 60 DT Charles Tuaau — 61 DE Cleyon Laing — 72 OL Jermon Bushrod — 74 T Sam Young — 79 WR A.J. Cruz — 81 TE Dominique Jones — 85 WR Tyler Davis — 87 DE Mario Williams — 94 Here are the jersey numbers of the veteran Dolphins players who changed uniform numbers this offseason: WR Matt Hazel — 15 (was 83) CB Jamar Taylor — 21 (was 22) RB Damien Williams — 26 (was 34) DE Damontre Moore — 98 (was 57)
It's worth noting that Kiko Alonso's #47(which he wore in college) is now an NFL-legal regular season number for a linebacker.