So Clinton Portis got his wish and will get to wear the # 26 this season. All it cost him to get former number holder Ifeanyi Ohalete to give it up, allegedly, was a car. So Portis will get his number, and Redskin fans will be looking to the # 26 to carry a heavy load of ball control football in 2004.
Ohalete will be driving to Redskin Park in style in the # 30.
Scott Cloman didn’t have to buy anyone a vehicle, so he thought it was safe to go ahead and switch from the # 19 he wore last year during training camp, to the # 89. He was a very difficult cut in 2003, keep your eye on him again this year to see if he can crack that line-up. It’s a good bet that the # 89 at least finds it’s way to the 2004 practice squad.
There will in fact be a lot of new Redskins in new numbers this season, there are a lot of new faces. Here is a list of some of the major numbers to watch out for:
# 36 – Sean Taylor – perhaps soon to be the jersey choice of many Redskins’ fans, Taylor will be looking to show he’s worthy of the # 5 pick.
# 8 – Mark Brunell – whether it’s as the starter, or the guy who pushes Patrick Ramsey and backs him up, having the # 8 on the sidelines will give Joe Gibbs the piece of mind and security of two able quarterbacks.
# 59 – Michael Barrow – cerebral, good tackler, you’ll see the # 59 a lot this season as the middle linebacker will undoubtedly shore up the defense’s ability to defend the run.
# 53 – Marcus Washington – the other new linebacker in Washington. Big and powerful, he was really starting to come into his own in 2003 with the Colts.
# 47 – Chris Cooley – is the 3rd round pick the answer at h-back?
# 24 – Shawn Springs – not Champ Bailey… but his replacement. Hopefully Springs can stay healthy and we can see his number on the active roster 16 times this regular season.
# 96 – Cornelius Griffin – while many will look to see how many times # 96 is in the backfield as a measure of success, Grffin and barrow will largely dictate how well this defense can stop the run.
# 52 – Cory Raymer – Will the # 52 step up and put re-signee Lennie Friedman back into a back-up role? Even if Friedman does win the job, count on seeing Raymer any time anyone in the interior of the o-line needs a break or gets hurt.
# 93 – Phillip Daniels – the former Bear WILL have to be able to get to the quarterback to establish his worth. Battling with Regan Upshaw for the starting job at right end likely, the one who looks like they can create the most pressure will likely be the one that gets the nod.
# 82 – Brian Kozlowski – Cooley will likely be batling the former Falcon TE Kozlowski for that h-back job. Watch for the # 82 on special teams too.
# 19 – Tom Tupa – two reasons to keep an eye on this number… much improved punting, and great special teams trick play potential with his quarterback skills.
There are other new roster additions to look up, but these are the ones that you are likely going to see the most frequently.
The 2004 season is approaching… time to start brushing up on your numbers.
— BossHog
Edit: This blog was archived in May of 2016 from our original articles database.It was originally posted by Mark Solway