Best of Jersey 26

In the NFL, jersey numbers hold a special place. They become synonymous with the iconic players who wore them, their achievements forever linked to the number on their back. Today, we're turning the spotlight on number 26!

This seemingly unassuming number has been donned by some of the league's most impactful players. From hard-hitting safeties to elusive running backs, number 26 boasts a diverse and impressive history.

Curious about the NFL greats who wore number 26? This article dives into the careers of the most famous players who donned this jersey. We'll explore their on-field dominance, signature plays, and the impact they left on the game.  So, gear up for a nostalgic journey through NFL history as we unveil the legends who wore number 26 like a champ!

Emmy winner, Chris Willis, the Head of the NFL Films Library and a great Gridiron author joins us once again to talk about the greatest players to wear a particular jersey number and in this discussion we will be coming up with the top ten best NFL players to wear the number 26! Some of the books that Chris has written on the early NFL include:

• The Man Who Built the National Football League: Joe F. Carr ,
• Red Grange: The Life and Legacy of the NFL's First Superstar,
• Dutch Clark
• The Columbus Panhandles

You will not be sorry when you have these titles in your personal library as they are extremely well written! Chris Willis Welcome to the Pigpen!

The Hall of Fame gives us our starting point:

• Rod Woodson
• Herb Adderley
• Benny Friedman
• Ty Law
• Paul Krause

Herb Adderley

Born June 8, 1939, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was a Pro Football Hall of Fame Defensive Back for the Green Bay Packers. Herb ended his career with the Dallas Cowboys. Prior to being picked by the Packers in the first round of the 1961 NFL Draft as an offensive halfback, Adderly had played collegiately for Michigan State. In his rookie season facing the fact that the Pack already had two great backs in Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, the Green Bay coaches flipped him over to the defensive side of the ball as an emergency fill in for an injured corner Hank Gremminger and Adderly thrived as a cornerback. Adderly accounted for 48 interceptions in his career and did some damage returning them as he averaged 21.8 yards per pick for a total of 1046 yards. Herb played in five NFL title games, and four Super Bowls! One of his biggest moments as a pro was a 60 yard pick six in Super Bowl II. The ball hawking back also made it into five Pro Bowl games as he was also an All-Pro in five different seasons. The Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrined Herb Adderly in 1980 to their Canton, Ohio museum.

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Rod Woodson

Born February 10, 1965, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, was the cornerback with World Speed from Purdue Rod Woodson. Per his bio on the FootballFoundation.org website Rod was the 1986 runner-up for the Jim Thorpe Award and left Purdue holding 13 individual school records. He left Purdue as the career leader in solo tackles, interceptions, interception return yardage, interceptions returned for touchdowns, kickoff returns and kickoff return yardage, and he still ranks in the top five in nearly every category. Rod Woodson was honored with induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2016 after the National Football Foundation tallied their votes. Woodson was the tenth overall player taken in the 1987 NFL Draft picked by the Pittsburgh Steelers. All he did was produce great stats for the majority of his career. In 1993 he was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year and was a six time All-Pro during his 17 year career. Rod picked off 71 career passes and held the NFL record for interception return yards at 1473 when he retired. Besides the Steelers , Woodson played with the 49ers, the Ravens and the Raiders. Rod Woodson was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009. For more on this legend check out these awesome posts below:

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Some substantial NFL players who wore the number 31 that are not yet in the Hall of Fame are:

• Raymond Clayborn
• Clinton Portis
• Lydell Mitchell
• LeVeon Bell
• Wendell Tyler
• Robert Smith
• Deuce McAllister
• Preston Pearson
• Antoine Winfield
• Charles Romes
• Michael Downs
• George Saimes
• Bennie McRae
• Gary Barbaro
• Vann McElroy
• Dawan Landry
• Brady Keys
• Jarvis Williams
• Kevin Smith
• Lamar Miller
• Lito Sheppard
• Al Nelson
• Rob Carpenter
• Ken Hamlin

1. Rod Woodson
2. Herb Adderley
3. George Saimes
4. Antoine Winfield
5. Clinton Portis
6. Raymond Clayborn
7. Wendell Tyler
8. LeVeon Bell
9. Lydell Mitchell
10. Robert Smith

Do you agree or disagree with our list? We would love to get your feedback, so email us at PigskinDispatch@gmail.com.

A speical thanks to the Pro Football Reference website for information they share on these great players. Check them out at Pro-Football-Reference.com

The Image used above is courtesy of Google Gemini and others from Wikimedia Commons. It is pleasing to see such vivid images of the jerseys that point out the uniform number and help us identify the legends that wore it.