With a new team comes a new jersey number for JuJu Smith-Schuster.
Smith-Schuster on Monday shared a Photoshop on his Instagram story of him wearing a No. 7 Patriots jersey. The veteran wideout is the new headliner of New England’s receiving corps, having signed with the team last month.
Smith-Schuster wore No. 9 for the Kansas City Chiefs last season and in college at USC, but that number belongs to Matthew Judon, the Patriots’ Pro Bowl edge rusher. The No. 19 Smith-Schuster sported during his five seasons in Pittsburgh was vacant, but he evidently opted to stick with a single digit.
No. 7 in New England last belonged to punter Jake Bailey, whom the team released last month.
The Patriots won’t officially announce their 2023 jersey numbers until shortly before spring practices begin in May, and all are subject to change before the regular season kicks off in September. Smith-Schuster is one of nine players New England has added this offseason, joining tight end Mike Gesicki, offensive tackles Riley Reiff and Calvin Anderson, running back James Robinson, linebackers Chris Board and Olakunle Fatukasi, cornerback Rodney Randle and punter Corliss Waitman.
The NFL recently tweaked its uniform number regulations to allow players to wear No. 0 for the first time in decades and punters/kickers to wear any number from 0-49 or 90-99. So, we could see Waitman rocking some unusual digits when he makes his Patriots practice debut.
