New Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Ronald Jones made an interesting decision Tuesday that gave some fans reason to sigh with relief.
Fandom is a funny thing. As fans, people do crazy things that they think somehow impact a game hundreds of miles away. They become attached to certain traditions because they bring good luck. They avoid certain things because of bad luck in the past. I’m guilty of it. I had been growing out my beard since December for the hockey season and had some Lightning items on my living room mantle. The Bolts went down 2-0, I shaved and moved my flag and Stamkos Funko Pop and voila – the Bolts won. It’s only crazy if it doesn’t work, right? For Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans, there was a certain disdain for a number one of the Bucs rookies would wear.
Alas, that is no longer the case.
Ronald Jones said on Tuesday that he would not wear number 22 this season and instead would wear number 27.
As I noted when I first put out the jersey numbers for this year's draft class, these things sometimes change. And one has. Ronald Jones has a new number. Let him tell you what it's going to be. pic.twitter.com/znKmkkuUUv
— Scott Smith (@ScottSBucs) May 15, 2018
Fans were not thrilled with the decision to go with 22 since most still have a very bad taste in their mouth stemming from the Doug Martin era. Martin was given his walking papers after another poor performance in 2017, allowing him to sign on with the Oakland Raiders and the coach many wanted back in Tampa Bay – Jon Gruden.
I personally didn’t put a lot of stock in the number choice. Of course, there weren’t a lot of options to choose from to begin with for Jones. To me, it was a way to take a refreshing swish of Listerine to the Martin after taste, but it’s not the number that makes the player.
There is some history to the number 27 as well, starting with former running back LeGarrette Blount who played well in Tampa before moving on to win Super Bowls with the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles. There was also Johnthan Banks, the second round pick in 2013 who went on to be placed firmly in Lovie Smith’s dog house, never to return.
Other memorable names to wear 27 for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are Torrie Cox and Aaron Stecker.
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I’m sure we’ll see plenty of 27 jerseys gracing Raymond James Stadium this season as fans are excited for Jones to come in and give the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a dynamic presence in the backfield. At the end of the day, we all hope that one day the number 27 is never worn again. If that’s the case, it means Jones was the explosive, dominant player the Bucs are hoping for and his number is enshrined in the Ring – and Buccaneers history.