Yesterday, the Pittsburgh Steelers announced a host of new numbers for their incoming additions. Eleven new players and their new threads were unveiled, including a few surprising selections by players.

Jersey numbers have always fascinated me. To some players it’s just a complete random pick. To others, it’s a symbol of a personal story or a way to honor someone. In any case, each and every number in Steelers history as a history with the franchise.

Now, 11 of those numbers will begin a new story being told. So with that, it’s time to play Who Wore It Last?

Just a disclaimer beforehand, I am only counting players who wore the number in a meaningful game. Players who only had the number on the practice squad or in preseason games do not count for this list.

No. 2-Justin Fields (previously Mason Rudolph)

First up is (presumptive) backup quarterback Justin Fields, who switches from No. 1 in Chicago to No. 2 in Pittsburgh in more way than one. Wearing No. 1 has become taboo for the Steelers; it has only been worn four times in team history, and has not been worn by a player in a regular season game since 1994.

So, why not just one-up it? Fields now sports No. 2, which was previously worn by quarterback Mason Rudolph. Rudolph wore No. 2 all six years of his Steelers career, and is actually the longest tenured player to wear that number in team history. Only ten players have worn No. 2 in franchise history (including Rudolph), and eight of them only wore it for one year. Dennis Dixon is the exception, wearing it for two years.

Only time will tell if Fields overtakes Rudolph in that department.

No. 3-Russell Wilson (previously Brad Wing)

Russell Wilson takes No. 3 for the Steelers, becoming the second player in as many years to dawn the number after it took a four year hiatus.

Wilson has worn No. 3 his entire career, so it comes as no surprise that he will wear that number here as well as he begins his Steelers tenure.

A quarterback has not worn No. 3 for the Steelers since Landry Jones, last appearing in 2017. Since then, kicker (and one-game wonder) Matt McCrane and most recently, punter Brad Wing have worn No. 3 in black and yellow.

Wing joined the Steelers after Pressley Harvin suffered injury during the season. Wing also had stints on the practice squad for the team, even making the trip to Buffalo for the playoffs despite not punting in that game.

No. 4-Kyle Allen (previously Nick Sciba)

Sure, let’s get all of the quarterbacks out of the way now. Kyle Allen, who will serve as a veteran third string guy QB for the Steelers, is the first player on this list whose number went unaccounted for last season.

To go back to the last time someone wore No. 4, we need to go back to the 2022 season, when kicker Nick Sciba wore it for one game with the Steelers.

Sciba was called upon by the Steelers after an injury saw Chris Boswell sidelined in their last game before their bye week. Sciba was released afterwards, with the Steelers believing Boswell would be healthy after the bye.

They were wrong, and instead of bringing Sciba back, they gave Matthew Wright a buzz.

No. 5-Cameron Johnston (previously Joshua Dobbs)

There’s a new punter in town, and his name is Bill Burr Cameron Johnston. After three years of subpar performances by Pressley Harvin, the Steelers signed Johnston to replace Harvin after he was cut.

No. 5 hasn’t been in circulation these last few years; the last player to wear it in a game was Joshua Dobbs. Dobbs wore No. 5 in both of his Steelers tenures, but interestingly has not worn that same number in any other city he has played in.

No. 6-Patrick Queen (previously Pressley Harvin)

Speaking of Pressley Harvin, his number now goes to Patrick Queen.

Queen wore No. 48 in his rookie year with the Baltimore Ravens, but ever since wore No. 6, which he now takes with him to the Steelers. When play officially starts, you might not recognize much of a difference between the two. Despite being a punter, Harvin was built like a linebacker, which Queen is actually is.

No. 11-Van Jefferson (previously Allen Robinson)

Van Jefferson is wearing a brand new number for him, taking No. 11 for the Steelers. Over his three and a half years for the LA Rams, he wore No. 12, and he wore No. 15 when he was traded down to Atlanta.

Now, he will wear No. 11, which was worn by Allen Robinson last year. The No. 11 has been somewhat of a curse in recent years: Donte Moncrief, Chase Claypool, and Robinson.

Now, in fairness to Robinson, he did start every game for the Steelers, but he recorded his lowest reception yards total of his career (excluding 2017 when he only played one game).

Can Jefferson bring some better luck to the No. 11?

No. 16-Quez Watkins (previously Myles Jack)

When Myles Jack came out of retirement to join the Steelers late in 2023, he wore No. 16 for Pittsburgh, different from the No. 51 he wore in 2022 for the team.

The No. 16 has seen an array of obscure players wear it ever since Charlie Batch retired. Lance Moore, Tyler Murphy, Matthew Wright, and Josh Jackson all had it before Jack dawned it for 2023. Now, Watkins takes it, probably hoping to last longer than the one year all of those previous players did.

No. 25-DeShon Elliott (previously Eric Rowe)

Similarly to Myles Jack, Eric Rowe was a late season addition that proved to be vital for an injured defense. Rowe played admirably in the secondary for the Steelers, who was signed to the practice squad before being promoted.

While Rowe was the most recent to wear No. 25, he was not the only player to wear it last season. Before Rowe, Desmond King sported the number when he very briefly played for the Steelers. You might remember him for playing exactly one defensive snap for the Steelers, and very limited special teams work, before being released and heading back to Houston.

In any case, Elliott now takes No. 25, becoming the ninth defensive player in a row to wear the number. The last offensive player to wear it was running back Fred McAfee, who last did it in 1998.

No. 26-Donte Jackson (previously Anthony McFarland Jr.)

While the No. 26 is pretty synonymous with Le’Veon Bell, Jackson will become the third player to wear it after Bell’s departure.

Mark Barron wore it in the first year after Bell’s 2018 holdout, and then Anthony McFarland Jr. took the number all the way through last season.

Jackson, who arrived here by trade in exchange for Diontae Johnson, is now the fifth player to continue a trend of alternating offensive/defensive players to wear No. 26.

No. 84-Cordarrelle Patterson (previously Antonio Brown)

This one did make a few waves, with No. 84 being taken up by utility offensive player Cordarrelle Patterson.

Though a few different players have worn the number in preseason games/practice squad appearances, no one has worn No. 84 in a meaningful game since Antonio Brown.

The decision by Patterson to wear No. 84 does not come to spite Brown; Patterson has worn the number every year of his ten year career, with five different teams. But it did come with some controversy.

Some fans questioned why the number has not been retired, and some think it should at least still be out of circulation. However, others still look at the way Brown forced his way out of Pittsburgh, an ugly mark on what was one of, if not the best wide receiver career in Steelers history.

Brown himself seemed to have a mostly negative reaction to Patterson’s decision, going after him on his Twitter/X account as well as several other posts on the matter.

Regardless of how you feel about the matter, it will be pretty odd to see a Steeler wearing No. 84 who isn’t Antonio Brown.

No. 94-Dean Lowry (previously Armon Watts)

Lastly, we have the No. 94, which has been very common on Steelers teams for years. Lowry takes over for Armon Watts, who wore it last season.

Prior to Watts, the number had worn by someone for every year since 2004, usually by players who have spent lengthy amounts of time here in Pittsburgh.

Now, the number is seeing some turnover in recent years. Lowry becomes the second player in two years to wear No. 94. Lowry has worn No. 94 all seven years of his NFL career, both in Green Bay and in Minnesota.

(Featured photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)