Braylon Edwards thinks Denard should get #1 jersey
Basically just relaying a tweet from mspeedkills, but Braylon thinks Denard should get the #1 jersey.
Traditional thoughts assume it would only go to a wide receiver, but Braylon said it, and it's also Denard, so...
http://twitter.com/#!/mspeedkills
August 25th, 2011 at 12:35 PM ^
You lost me at "Braylon Edwards thinks". I knew nothing good could come of it.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:39 PM ^
Braylon would still be walking around in the #1 jersey if it were socially acceptable to do so.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:57 PM ^
He still is pretty much. This isn't surprising, he offered it because he knows he won't take it.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:55 PM ^
This might be the one good idea he has had in recent memory. I'm all for tradition and a WR getting it, but it's Denard. He Gets It.
I'm not sure I would feel this way about any other player.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:56 PM ^
Denard is 16. No.
August 25th, 2011 at 2:08 PM ^
Plus, I just bought a #16 jersey because of Denard, and although Navarre was an amazing Michigan QB, I'd like it to be my "Denard Jersey" for at least a couple of years.
August 25th, 2011 at 2:34 PM ^
I'm with you there!
#16 will always be Denard's number....
Much like #2 will always be Woodson's ..... [or whatever tremendous DB gets it because of him]
Much like #98 will always be Harmon's .....
August 26th, 2011 at 12:25 AM ^
Navarre was "amazing"?
You're going with that adjective? Really?
August 25th, 2011 at 12:38 PM ^
Denard thinks Braylon should get the #16 jersey.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:58 PM ^
...by the sheer awesomeness of your comment. +1
August 25th, 2011 at 1:07 PM ^
that pos-bangs need to be reinstated. Tip of the cap to you sir.
August 25th, 2011 at 1:36 PM ^
The whole beginning of this thread makes that case, in fact. Tremendous start.
August 25th, 2011 at 2:35 PM ^
I am a better person than I was 15 seconds ago....thank you
August 25th, 2011 at 12:38 PM ^
Very hypocrital if true
August 25th, 2011 at 12:39 PM ^
Outside the box but it is Denard. He probably deserves it.
Funny thing is...he'd never wear it. In his mind it would be like saying, "It's about me, I'm number 1" and that is the absolute opposite of Denard.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:40 PM ^
I thought this last year as well. but I dunno I think 16 has kind of become "denard" now...just like desmond is 21 or woodson is 2
August 25th, 2011 at 12:53 PM ^
Wearing my fraternity sweatshop manufactured "DESMOND - YOU DA MAN" t-shirt in 1995, a co-worker saw the 21 on the back and says "hey, Biakabutuka!" Don't forget Tim!
August 25th, 2011 at 12:41 PM ^
Jim Harbaugh thinks Braylon Edwards should get off the Twitter and read his new playbook.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:41 PM ^
I have to imagine the team would be fine with that - really, who would dispute it? But I don't think Denard would be ok with that. I think the only way he accepts the #1 jersey is if the rest of the team wants him to do it.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:42 PM ^
I expect Denard would prefer to see one of his receivers earn it.
August 25th, 2011 at 1:28 PM ^
Yeah, like Roundtree...once he stops dropping passes
August 25th, 2011 at 12:42 PM ^
I'm a traditionalist, no... I don't think Denard would be for it either
August 25th, 2011 at 12:43 PM ^
also thought it was a good idea to get into a fight with LeBron James and his entourage because LeBron was more popular in his home state.
August 25th, 2011 at 3:16 PM ^
If we're picking sides here, I'm on Braylon's side way before LBJ.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:45 PM ^
This jersey # thing is dumb. It seems hypocritical to me to talk about The Team The Team The Team and then reserver jersey #'s for "special players."
August 25th, 2011 at 12:49 PM ^
Look at it this way: it's the team giving back the players for caring about...it? Weird to try and make the team a living entity, but you get the point. Look after the team enough and be rewarded with a special jersey.
August 25th, 2011 at 1:44 PM ^
what do you do 50 years from now when you've had potential record breakers and heisman trophy winners and such? I don't think we need to see triple digits on jerseys because of so many special players.
August 25th, 2011 at 2:08 PM ^
Sounds like a problem worth having.
August 25th, 2011 at 2:16 PM ^
We had special players fifty years ago and it hasn't become a problem. If a Heisman trophy winner wants to make his number a reward for a position (like endowing the jersey scholarship) then I'm all for it, even if it means filling up the entire field with "special numbers". In reality this will not happen. 1, 2, possibly 7 in the coming years, and I could also see 77, but beyond that I can't think of a easily recognizable number that conveys excellence at a position. Somebody more familiar with history might be able to name more numbers, but I challenge anyone to make the case for more than a few beyond the ones I've named.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:50 PM ^
I don't think its so much about "special players" as it is a way to motivate guys to do more. If it can get all of the WRs going just a little bit harder trying to earn it, would that really be a bad thing?
August 25th, 2011 at 1:38 PM ^
I agree. It also could be a helpful little selling point with WR recruiting. Every little bit helps.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:53 PM ^
Well, if you want to carry the thought process in that direction, why have captains then?
The #1 jersey will go to a receiver who have proven he's worth it.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:59 PM ^
Because teams have captains.
August 25th, 2011 at 1:10 PM ^
August 25th, 2011 at 1:24 PM ^
I agree. I'm not arguing against captains. I'm noting that being a captain is a distinction awarded to only a couple of players. The team awards are others. It's best not to obsess over logical extremes. You can emphasize the team and still do these things.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:46 PM ^
Does Braylon want Denard to switch to wide receiver too?
August 25th, 2011 at 12:54 PM ^
I assume no, but the NFL will...
August 25th, 2011 at 12:58 PM ^
Of course I see this just after reading the front page and its mention of fake controversies. So *now* it's ok for a non-WR to have the #1 jersey? Whatever.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:49 PM ^
Juding from comments on here, and other people I've talk to, I feel like Braylon has lost a lot of respect from the fanbase. The guy has acted like a tool since he left Michigan. Not that that strips away his status as a Michigan alum, but does he really have the clout to say something like that? My knee-jerk reaction to this is, "Who cares what Braylon thinks anymore?"
August 25th, 2011 at 1:01 PM ^
He's only acted like a tool after leaving Michigan?
August 25th, 2011 at 1:11 PM ^
about what he has done off the field. He was a beast on the field. Full respect.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:50 PM ^
The 'tradition' of the #1 is more about a guy who is a difference-maker on the field than position -- Someone the defense has to pay attention to with multiple defenders unless they want to see referee armpits. Denard fits the bill.
August 25th, 2011 at 12:57 PM ^
If it's not about a position, why have all players to wear #1 going back to Anthony Carter (1979-82) been wide receivers?
August 25th, 2011 at 1:13 PM ^
And how can that be an accident!
August 25th, 2011 at 1:17 PM ^
I'm saying there's a more important factor than position. I don't think anyone would have been upset if Woodson wore #1.
The 'tradition' has changed plenty since the 70s and didn't become anything worth mentioning until Edwards, when Lloyd told him it was something to be earned. Prior to that, #1 was just a number they gave to WR, including true freshman (e.g., Greg McMurtry.) Alexander inherited as an (unproven) sophomore after McMurtry left. Then Tyrone Butterfield (true freshman WR) wore it. Then David Terrell (true freshman) wore it. He ended up being really good, and the #1 jersey by then had some cache around it, which is why Braylon wanted it in the first place...but Lloyd, and his attitude towards #1 is what makes it special.
The #1 is about character and excellence. You have to PROVE that you deserve it. If it's just the best WR on the Michigan roster, then it loses meaning IMO.
August 25th, 2011 at 1:31 PM ^
It's true that the jersey did not always have to be "earned" but it's always carried a certain cachet. If a wideout came into the game wearing #1, the TV guys would take note: "Well, you know the staff thinks highly of this kid." It's a receiver's number. QBs get the glory of having the ball on every play. A WR can get the glory of the #1 jersey.
August 25th, 2011 at 1:47 PM ^
but Tyrone Butterfield, man. Even Mario Manningham would have been a waste to some degree if he earned it (and that's why Lloyd might not have given it to him...).
I'd rather the honor be associated with character than slavishly tied to a single position. Giving it to Denard would make the #1 jersey mean even more than it does right now.
As much as everyone seems to detest Braylon, I think he's right on this one. Its not about position.
August 25th, 2011 at 7:29 PM ^
Butterfield was a juco transfer.
Is that better or worse than giving it to a true freshman?
August 25th, 2011 at 12:51 PM ^
please start the season...