Patriots announce new jersey numbers for 13 of their veteran players

The New England Patriots will return to the practice fields on Monday to kick off their organized team activities as part of the third phase of voluntary offseason workouts. The session will not just be another step towards the 2022 season, it will also give us a first look at some new jersey numbers.

All of the team’s offseason additions were wearing new digits, with the team announcing the full list of veteran changes in a social media post on Monday morning:

The list of new veteran numbers looks as follows:

3 — DB Jabrill Peppers: Peppers already announced his move to No. 3 earlier this offseason. The former first-round draft pick wore 22 and 21 during his stints in Cleveland and New York, respectively but will go single-digit with his third NFL team.

4 — CB Malcolm Butler: Butler had worn No. 21 during his first tenure as a Patriot. That number is currently occupied by Adrian Phillips, however, prompting a move to No. 4.

11 — WR DeVante Parker: Parker already donned No. 11 with the Miami Dolphins, and he will continue wearing it in New England. He is filling some prominent shoes, with the number previously being held by Patriots legends such as Drew Bledsoe and Julian Edelman.

13 — K Quinn Nordin: With Jabrill Peppers taking over No. 3, second-year kicker Quinn Nordin added a “1” to his previous number. He will be wearing No. 13 moving forward.

14 — WR Ty Montgomery: Like Peppers before him, Montgomery also already announced that he will move to No. 14. He did wear 88 throughout his entire NFL career up until this year, but even though it is currently unoccupied he opted for a different jersey number.

19 — WR Malcolm Perry: Perry was already listed as No. 19 when he was with the Patriots’ practice squad last season. He was re-signed to a futures pact earlier this deal.

27 — CB Myles Bryant: After two years as No. 41 Bryant has decided to change numbers. He is now wearing the No. 27 jersey previously owned by departed Pro Bowler J.C. Jackson.

30 — LB Mack Wilson Sr.: The first Patriots offseason trade addition to announce his jersey number, Wilson picking No. 30 is a nod to his past: he wore that number during his college career at Alabama. He was No. 51 during his three seasons with the Cleveland Browns.

39 — CB Terrance Mitchell: Mitchell has been wearing No. 39 ever since 2016. He will now be on his fourth different team wearing that number: he already donned it in Kansas City, Cleveland and Houston.

61 — OL Drew Desjarlais: This one is pretty straight forward: Desjarlais wore 61 during his time in the CFL and will keep it in the NFL as well.

74 — OL Arlington Hambright: Hambright donned 71 and 53 as a member of the Chicago Bears. Now, he is trying to be more successful with No. 74.

82 — WR Tre Nixon: Nixon wore No. 87 as a rookie last year. Now, he will wear No. 82 and that’s all that really is to say about it.

87 — TE Matt Sokol: Rob Gronkowski’s old number is back in the hands of a tight end. Chances are, however, that Sokol will not have the same impact on the team as the old No. 87 had.

The Patriots’ rookie class, meanwhile, has yet to receive its official jersey numbers. For the time being its members are again donning jerseys in the 50s and 60s based on draft status. The team did the same the last few years, with the highest draft choice — offensive lineman Cole Strange — being assigned number 50, and so on.

If New England sticks to the past timeline, the youngsters will only receive regular jersey numbers before the preseason opener.