The Baltimore Ravens have had a few of their players switch jersey numbers in accordance with new rules that the NFL put in place to ease restrictions on what many positional groups could wear. Patrick Queen, L.J. Fort, and Marquise Brown all switched their numbers, and will be wearing single digits on the field.
When asked if defensive players wearing single digit uniforms could pose a challenge, center Bradley Bozeman said that it comes down to film study.
“It’s just film study. You’ve got to know your guys; you’ve got to know who you’re going against. That’s the biggest thing. I understand that point, but at the end of the day, you’ve got to study your people, you’ve got to know who’s in the box, you’ve got to know who you’re most dangerous guys are to take care of – and it’s kind of that simple.”
Bozeman will be making the transition from left guard to center, a position that he played in college. While it might be a bit more difficult over the first few weeks of the season to recognize players with their new numbers, as more film is put out there, it should get easier. As Bozeman says, as long as players are studying their opponents and go into a game knowing where players line up, the NFL’s new jersey rules shouldn’t cause too much confusion.