No. 54 and the New York Giants Player Who Wore It Best

Linebacker Andy Headen was a key rotational player for three straight playoff teams, including a SB champion

Jan 25, 1987; Pasadena, CA, USA; FILE PHOTO; New York Giants linebacker Andy Headen (54) | Darr Beiser-Imagn Images

The countdown to the start of the New York Giants’ 2025 season is underway, as we’re now 54 days away from the opening kickoff against the Washington Commanders. To count down the days until then, we look at the best players to wear the corresponding number for the Giants.

Who Wore #54 in at Least One Regular Season Game*

LB Ken Avery (1967-68), LB Carlton Bailey (1993-94), LB Jon Beason (2013), LB Jonathan Casillas (2015), C Gene Ceppetelli (1969), LB Tom Costello (1965), LB Jonathan Goff (2008-10), LB Nick Greisen (2002-05), LB LaSalle Harper (1989), LB Andy Headen (19=983-88), LB Dwayne Jiles (1989), LB Dyontae Johnson (2024), LB Dan Lloyd (1976-79), LB Blake Martinez (2020-21), LB Max Messner (1964), LB Spencer Paysinger (2014), LB Brandon Short (2006), LB Bill Singletary (1974), LB Tuzar Skipper (2019), LB Jaylon Smith (2021-22), LB Ben Talley (1995), LB Olen Underwood (1965), DE Olivier Vernon (2016-18).

*Jersey numbers per Pro Football Reference.

Which Giants Player Wore It Best?

Outside linebacker Andy Headen, much like teammate Byron Hunt, would have been a solid starter for most teams but was caught in a depth chart log jam behind the likes of Lawrence Taylor and Carl Banks for most of his career. 

Fortunately, the Giants were not shy about working in Headen, a special-teams stalwart, as part of their nickel package because of his great length, quickness, speed, athleticism, and ability to read the quarterback. 

He had at least one interception each season from 1984-87 and finished his career with six in 71 regular-season games (11 starts). 

Headen was a part of three straight postseason teams (1984-86), including the Super Bowl XXI champions, but a back injury forced him to retire in the middle of the 1988 season.

The Giants tabbed Headen in the eighth round out of Clemson, where he was part of the 1981 National Championship team, in the 1983 NFL Draft. 

He played in every game as a rookie, compiling 28 tackles and five sacks, highlighted by two sacks against Philadelphia in Week 6. In 1984, Headen made a career-high six starts before being placed on the injured reserve list and yielding the job to Banks, his rookie teammate. 

Headen made a big splash in the Week 2 rout over Dallas, picking up quarterback Gary Hogeboom’s fumble and racing 81 yards for a touchdown – at the time, the longest return of a fumble in franchise history. 

In the playoffs, the linebacker sealed the 16-13 Wild Card win over the Los Angeles Rams by recovering quarterback Jeff Kemp’s fumble at the Rams' 33-yard line with almost two minutes remaining.

Headen registered career-highs with 5.5 sacks in 1985 and 40 tackles in 1987. He was injured against Dallas during the third game of the 1988 season and missed almost two months before the team doctors recommended he retire due to a small herniation of a disk that was very close to his spinal cord.

Who’s Wearing It Now?

New York Giants linebacker Dyontae Johnson | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Reserve inside linebacker Dyontae Johnson received No. 54 after signing with the Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2023. He spent the season on the practice squad, then suffered a sprained ankle during the following preseason and spent all but the final two games on injured reserve.

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