Number 84 and the Three Dolphins Who Wore It Best

The countdown to the start of the 2022 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 84.

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 84 for at least one regular season game for the Dolphins:

DE Earl Faison (1966), DL Ray Jacobs (1967-68), DE Bill Stanfill (1969-76), TE Bruce Hardy (1978-89), TE Willie Smith (1987), TE Greg Baty (1990-94), WR Gary Clark (1995), TE Troy Drayton (1996-99), TE Brett Carolan (1996), WR Leslie Shepherd (2000), WR Chris Chambers (2001-07), WR Patrick Turner (2009), TE Michael Egnew (2012-13), TE Jordan Cameron (2015-16), WR Isaiah Ford (2018-20), TE Hunter Long (2021)

The breakdown of 84 with the Dolphins

This is an interesting number because it featured productive players at three different positions. Defensive end Bill Stanfill became one of the best pass rushers in Dolphins history after being a first-round pick in 1969 and he shared the all-time team sack record (unofficially) until Jason Taylor came along and broke it. Tight end Bruce Hardy, who made the cover of Sports Illustrated as a high school athlete in Arizona, started 95 games during his 12-year NFL career, all of it with the Dolphins. Then there's wide receiver Chris Chambers, who was a second-round pick in 2001, became a starter during his rookie season and was named team MVP in 2005 when had 1,118 receiving yards, including 238 during a December game against the Buffalo Bills. Tight end Troy Drayton started 53 games and caught 127 passes for the Dolphins after coming over in a 1996 trade for disappointing 1995 first-round pick Billy Milner.

Worth noting

Earl Faison joined the Dolphins midway through their inaugural season after being a five-time AFL All-Star but wasn't brought back in 1967. ... Tight end Willie Smith was a former University of Miami standout who played the three strike replacement games in 1987 but no other game in the NFL. ... Gary Clark closed out his 11-year NFL career with one season as a backup in Miami. ... Leslie Shepherd's one season with Miami was highlighted by his performance in the Monday night collapse against the New York Jets when he had touchdown catches of 42 and 46 yards. ... Patrick Turner was a disappointing third-round pick in 1989 who played only two games as a rookie before being waived before his second season.

The top three Dolphins players with number 84

1. DE Bill Stanfill

2. WR Chris Chambers

3. TE Bruce Hardy