If the NFL, spurred by Reggie Bush, revises its decades-old rules about what uniform numbers can be assigned to which positions on the field, the person most affected on each team may be a member of the equipment staff.
"You might be opening up a Pandora's box," said the Giants' equipment director, Joe Skiba, who doles out the numbers worn by the team's players.
The league may modify the numbering system that dictates, among other things, that quarterbacks wear jerseys in the single digits or teens, and that the 50s be reserved for linebackers and centers. The system has been in place since 1973 and has been challenged only a few times, most notably by Seattle Seahawks linebacker Brian Bosworth in 1987 and several times by Edgerrin James, the former Indianapolis Colts and current Arizona Cardinals running back.
PHOTO: AP
The NFL did not budge in those cases, but it did revise the rule two years ago, allowing receivers -- long relegated to the 80s -- to take a number in the teens if they were rookies or if they were on a new team.
The latest request for a revision may bring a big one. Bush, the New Orleans Saints' rookie running back who won the Heisman Trophy last year, is hoping to keep No. 5, which he wore at Southern California. For now, NFL running backs and defensive backs must wear a number from 20 to 49.
The NFL is deciding whether the number system is necessary, and if not, to what extent players should be free to choose their numbers. Next week, the eight-member competition committee will probably recommend that the team owners adopt a more flexible system starting in 2007 -- one that allows running backs and receivers to choose a number from 1 to 49.
At least 24 of the league's 32 teams would have to approve a revision.
Delaying the change for a year would provide time to handle the logistics of having veterans swap numbers in midcareer. Mainly, it would give time to sell through already-made jerseys to fans. But it would also create an awkward one-year period for Bush, forcing him to start his professional career in something other than No. 5.
The issue has marketing and practical aspects. Some players like to choose a number because they think it somehow fits them or, in Bush's case, has long been identified with them. Perhaps a 00, a number currently not allowed but being requested by Cleveland Browns center and guard LeCharles Bentley, would sell better than the No. 65 he wore with the Saints.
Teams, especially those like the Giants that have retired 10 or more jersey numbers in honor of former players, sometimes run out of numbers for certain positions. That prompted the league to open the teens to receivers, giving rise to Keyshawn Johnson's No. 19, Randy Moss' No. 18 and Plaxico Burress' No. 17, among others.
Moss' Raiders jersey was the top-selling jersey last year, the NFL said, with more than US$10 million in retail sales. Moss' cut from jersey sales last year was probably between US$300,000 and US$400,000. The players union receives 8.5 percent of each jersey's wholesale price, and players receive 75 percent of that amount; wholesale prices are roughly half of the retail price.
Bush has offered to give 25 percent of his earnings from the sale of a No. 5 Saints jersey to Hurricane Katrina relief funds.
For now, mostly because of the NFL's rules, players do not spend much time pondering their numbers. But equipment managers do.
The bloated off-season rosters make it impossible to squeeze all the players into a number from 1 to 99, especially when a player's position limits the possibilities. During the Giants' rookie minicamp that ended Monday, 14 pairs of players -- one on offense, one on defense -- had to share numbers.
Skiba is the arbiter, and there is little time or room to wrestle with players over the possibilities. It is about what fits and how they look.
Most of the team's defensive linemen wear numbers in the 90s, although digits in the 60s and 70s are allowed. Only two numbers in the 90s were available for the top draft choice, defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka, and the fourth-round choice, defensive tackle Barry Cofield.
"We had 96 or 97 for Kiwanuka," Skiba said. "He's tall and lean, and the 7 itself is more of a sleeker number. The 96 is more boxy. Barry Cofield is a stout guy. It's all about how it looks."
Kiwanuka wore No. 94 at Boston College, but that Giants number belongs to defensive tackle William Joseph. Kiwanuka said it did not matter to him what number he wore.
"I'll stay with 97," he said.
Kiwanuka is a rare rookie who was consulted. The second-round choice, Sinorice Moss, was also offered a couple of options - No. 89, or a number in the teens. He chose 89, but the Giants have told the suppliers to hold off on selling jerseys with that number, because Moss may change his mind as other numbers become available before the season. He wore No. 83 in college at Miami.
Other rookies get what they are handed.
"I just showed up, and it was on the back of my helmet," said defensive back Charlie Peprah, who was drafted in the sixth round and assigned No. 36.
The team's third-round selection, linebacker Gerris Wilkinson, wore No. 49 at Georgia Tech. But NFL linebackers must wear numbers in the 50s or the 90s. So Wilkinson will be No. 59.
"That's just what they had on my locker when I got here," he said.
Told that the NFL is considering a change to the system, Wilkinson smiled. "I would love to have No. 49," he said.
It is open, but it is not available -- for now.
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