The Power of Zero, Now Back in the N.F.L.

There will be something new in the N.F.L. next year: nothing.

Among the usual array of 12s and 88s and 97s dotting the league’s fields next season will be some humble 0s after the league on Tuesday voted to allow that number on jerseys for the first time in decades. At least one player, Jaguars wide receiver Calvin Ridley, has already said he plans to wear No. 0. Zero’s big cousin, 00, remains barred for now.

Although no N.F.L. players have worn uniforms with 0 or 00 in games since the 1980s, zeros have a history in the league. In other sports, 0, while nominally symbolizing the nothingness of the void, has adorned the backs of many players, even some greats.

In the N.F.L., the biggest star, by far, to make his mark in zeros was the Hall of Famer Jim Otto, an Oakland Raiders center from 1960 to 1974. Otto took 00 in his second season after a year as a more prosaic 50. It is no coincidence that the two O’s in “Otto” and the two 0s in “00” bear a resemblance: Players with O’s in their names — like Al Oliver, Orlando Woolridge and Oddibe McDowell — have been frequent wearers of 0.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/29/sports/football/number-0-nfl-jerseys.html