Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 84

Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 84 originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The New Orleans Saints are 84 days away from their 2025 regular season opener.   

New Orleans will face the Arizona Cardinals to open their 59th NFL season. It'll be their first year under new head coach Kellen Moore along with several other new faces.

Undrafted rookie wide receiver Moochie Dixon is wearing number 84 for the Saints currently. Dixon would be the 20th player to wear that number into the regular season if he makes the roster and keeps the same jersey. Here's a look back at the others to wear that number for New Orleans. 

Saints History of 84

• Jimmy Hester, TE (1967-69)

• Larry Estes, DE (1970-71)

• Preston Riley, WR (1973)

• John Beasley, TE (1974)

• Paul Seal, TE (1974-76)

• Rich Mauti, WR (1978-83)

• Junior Miller, TE (1984)

• Eric Martin, WR (1985-93)

• Steve Rhem, WR (1994-95)

• Eric Guliford, WR (1997-98)

• Scott Slutzker, TE (1999)

• Austin Wheatley, TE (2000)

• Michael Lewis, WR (2001-06)

• Tory Humphrey, TE (2009-10)

• Kenny Stills, WR (2013-14)

• Michael Hoomanawanui, TE (2015-17)

• Lil'Jordan Humphrey, WR (2019-21)

• J.P. Holtz, TE (2023)

• Mason Tipton, WR (2024)

• Moochie Dixon, WR (present)

Hester was the first to wear 84, catching 22 passes for 354 yards between the team's inaugural 1967 campaign and 1969. Estes was the only defensive player to don 84, doing so for two seasons. The first wide receiver to wear it was Riley, but doing so for only one game.

Rich Mauti was part of a family duo for the Saints. Rich was an undrafted pickup for New Orleans out of Penn State in 1977. He'd spend six years with the Saints as an accomplished special teams ace while catching 21 passes for 314 yards and 2 scores. Rich's son, Mike Mauti, also went to Penn State and was a linebacker for the Saints from 2015 to 2017.

Junior Miller was a Pro Bowl tight end with bitter rival Atlanta for the first four years of his career before joining New Orleans in 1984. Miller wasn't nearly as successful as a Saint, catching only 8 passes for 81 yards and a score in his only season with the team. 

New Orleans drafted LSU star receiver Eric Martin with a seventh round choice in the 1985 NFL Draft. Martin went on to a nine-year career with the Saints, playing 153 games as arguably the best receiver in the first 30 years of the franchise and the team's longest-tenured number 84.

In his nine years with New Orleans, Martin had 532 receptions for 7,854 yards and 48 touchdowns. He had three 1,000-yard seasons and was the first in team history to accomplish the feat in multiple years and consecutive seasons. Martin remained the franchise's all-time receiving leader until Marques Colston surpassed him 20 years later. In 1999, Martin was inducted into the Saints Hall of Fame. 

If Martin isn't the best 84 in team history, than kick returner/wide receiver Michael Lewis is. A New Orleans product, Lewis didn't play collegiately and soared to NFL stardom after being a delivery driver. He played seven years for the Saints and recorded 28 receptions for 553 yards and a score. It was his electric return abilities that carved out a place in franchise history.

Lewis led the NFL in kickoff, punt return, and all-purpose yardage in 2002 while taking 2 kicks and 1 punt back for touchdowns. His 2,647 all-purpose yards set an NFL record at the time, while his 1,807 kickoff return yards broke a long-standing team record by Tyrone Hughes and was second in league history. 

Over his seven years in New Orleans, Lewis took 4 kickoffs or punts back for scores. He averaged 10.4 yards per punt return and 24.3 on kickoff returns. He was inducted into the Saints Hall of Fame in 2015.

The first stint Kenny Stills had with the Saints was a case of what might have been before being traded because of off-field issues. A fifth-round choice in the 2013 NFL Draft out of Oklahoma, Stills was a lethal deep threat for quarterback Drew Brees for two seasons. He had 95 receptions for 1,572 yards and 8 scores over that span, averaging nearly 20 yards per catch. 

Hoomanawanui is perhaps the most underrated tight end to wear 84 in team history. Able to play both fullback and tight end, Hoomanawanui was a valuable blocker and effective short-yardage receiver that caught 17 passes for 128 yards and 4 scores in two years with the Saints. 

Lil'Jordan Humphrey came to the Saints as an undrafted rookie in 2019 after an outstanding career at Texas. Humphrey spent most of his time on the practice squad in his first two years, playing in eight games and catching 3 passes for 1 score. He had his best year with the Saints in 2021, recording 13 receptions for 249 yards and 3 touchdowns. 

Mason Tipton was a standout at Yale before making the Saints as an undrafted rookie last year. Injuries to the receiving corps thrust him into the lineup more often than anticipated. He responded with 14 catches for 99 yards in 11 games played. Tipton has switched to number 15 this offseason. 

Kelvontay ''Moochie'' Dixon is trying to follow in the footsteps of Tipton and Lil'Jordan Humphrey as an undrafted rookie. Dixon showcased outstanding speed at SMU and will try to race to a roster spot with the 2025 Saints. 

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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 15, 2025, where it first appeared.