Countdown to Jaguars Football: No. 77 and Who Has Donned it Best
In fewer than 100 days, Jacksonville Jaguars will return ... at least as things stand today.
While there is still some uncertainty surrounding the start of the NFL season, the league office has made it clear that they are planning to kick the season off on Sept. 10 and then have every other team play on Sept. 13.
By going off that timeline, we are now just 77 days from watching the Jaguars take the field against the Indianapolis Colts for the first regular season game of 2020.
In an effort to countdown to the start of the season, we will now be going from 95 through 1 to determine the best players to don the teal, black, and white for the Jaguars at each specific number. Yesterday, we tabbed Jermey Parnell as the team's best No. 78, but what about the next number?
So when considering each player has worn the No. 77 since Jacksonville's first season in 1995, who has been the most impactful? Since the team's inception, here are the players who have worn the jersey number:
- Patrick Omameh: 2016-18
- Uche Nwaneri: 2007-13
- Mike Compton: 2004
- Marques Ogden: 2003
- Zach Wiegert: 1999-2002
- Andre Davis: 1996
With a number of key offensive lineman on this list, who stands out as the best No. 77 in franchise history? We give our picks below.
No. 3: Patrick Omameh
After spending time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chicago Bears, Patrick Omameh signed with the Jaguars in 2016 and went on to start 25 games in three different seasons for the team at left guard, including a majority of the games for the team's 2017 team.
While Omameh was a star lineman during his time with Jacksonville, his best season came in 2017 when he started 13 games in the regular season and then three in the postseason, bringing a level of consistency to the left side of the line next to rookie tackle Cam Robinson.
No. 2: Uche Nwaneri
A fifth-round pick by the Jaguars out of Purdue in the 2007 NFL Draft, Uche Nwaneri started more games for the Jaguars than any other player who wore No. 77. While he joined the team following their best seasons under head coach Jack Del Rio, Nwaneri was one of the team's more consistent offensive line performers during his tenure.
Over his seven seasons in Jacksonville, Uche Nwaneri started 92 games and appeared in 104, giving him quite the amount of experience when compared to most others who have worn No. 77. Considering he was a fifth-round pick, that is a solid return on investment for Jacksonville.
No. 1: Zach Wiegert
One of the team's most versatile offensive linemen during his four-year tenure, Zach Wiegert started games at right guard, right tackle and left tackle during his time in Jacksonville. He would later finish his career with Houston, but he never started fewer than seven games for Jacksonville in any of his four seasons, giving him some longevity compared to others.
Wiegert's most notable season was his first with the Jaguars, as he started 12 games at right guard for the 14-2 team, which is often considered the best team talent-wise in Jaguars history. In his four seasons with Jacksonville, Wiegert started 43 games and likely would have started even before were it not for a few seasons derailed by injuries.
