Former UAB star’s switch keeps Dalvin Tomlinson in 94
Former Alabama standout Dalvin Tomlinson will continue to wear No. 94 on his jersey with the Cleveland Browns in his seventh NFL season.
The Browns announced the jersey numbers of their offseason acquisitions on Wednesday. That included Tomlinson, who came aboard in free agency for a four-year, $57 million contract.
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Defensive end Alex Wright wore No. 94 in his rookie season with Cleveland in 2022, but the former UAB standout already had announced on his Instagram account last week that he would wear No. 99 in the 2023 season, writing: “Another year, different approach.”
Taven Bryan wore No. 99 last season for the Browns, but the defensive tackle left last month in free agency for the Indianapolis Colts.
Tomlinson has worn No. 94 throughout his NFL career. He was No. 54 for the Crimson Tide, but when he got to the New York Giants as a second-round selection in the 2017 NFL Draft, veteran defensive end Olivier Vernon had that number.
Wright wore No. 16 at UAB, but as a defensive lineman, he can’t wear that number in the NFL.
A former Elba High School standout, Wright joined the Browns in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft and played in every game, with five starts, as a rookie.
Wright recorded 28 tackles, two tackles for loss, five pass deflections and one fumble recovery in 2022.
Tomlinson had 42 tackles, 2.5 sacks, three tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hits, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery for the Minnesota Vikings in 2022.
Tomlinson missed four games last season after missing only one start in the first 88 games of his NFL career.
The Browns began their offseason program on Monday.
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.