69 days until Saints opener: Every player to wear the No. 69 jersey
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We have reached 69 days until the New Orleans Saints open their 2026 season. The Saints will face the Detroit Lions on the road to start their year on Sunday, Sept. 13. Backup offensive lineman Barry Wesley is wearing No. 69 as New Orleans nears the beginning of training camp this month.
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Wesley spent all but one game on the Saints practice squad last season and is now fighting for a backup role on the offensive line. He's the 15th player to wear a 69 jersey for New Orleans. Our countdown to kickoff series continues with a look at each of them who did it.
Saints History of No. 69
- DE Andy Dorris (1974-76)
- OT Bill Fifer (1978)
- G Nat Hudson (1981)
- G Ralph Williams (1985)
- DT Pat Swoopes (1987, 1989)
- DT Les Miller (1991-94)
- C Tom Ackerman (1996-2001)
- DT McKinley Boykin (2007)
- DE Anthony Hargrove (2009-10)
- G Eric Olsen (2012, 2014)
- DE Anthony Zettel (2020)
- DT Jabari Zuniga (2022)
- DT Kentavius Street (2022)
- G Chris Reed (2024)
- OT Barry Wesley (2025-current)
It wasn't until 1974 that the Saints had their first player in a 69 uniform. Andy Dorris wore No. 88 for one game in 1973 before switching numbers. He'd wear 69 for the next three years and 41 games, which turned out to be the third longest tenure of any Saint to wear the number. Over his stint in 69, Dorris had 7 sacks with 3 fumble recoveries.
Over half of the fifteen Saints to wear 69 had it for a season or less, with six wearing it for fewer than five games. The first to have that dubious distinction was Bill Fifer for four games in 1978. The others with barely a blip on the radar were McKinley Boykin with three games in 2007, Anthony Zettel (2020), Jabari Zuniga (2022), and Chris Reed (2022) with one game each, and Barry Wesley with no game snaps to date.
Nat Hudson was the first New Orleans draft pick to wear a 69 jersey. Hudson was a sixth-round selection in the 1981 draft, appearing in 16 games as a reserve during his only year with the team. He's the second highest Saints draft choice to wear the number. Ralph Williams played two years in New Orleans but only wore 69 during his first in 1985, predominantly as a starter. Pat Swoopes came in as an 11th round pick by the Saints in the 1986 NFL Draft. Swoopes played parts of two different seasons with the team on their defensive line.
Les Miller joined the Saints in 1991 and remained with the team for four seasons. His 53 games are the second most for any Saint that has worn the 69 uniform. During that time he'd compile 4.5 sacks and force 4 fumbles. Tom Ackerman followed Miller two years later as a 1996 fifth-round pick by New Orleans. He's the highest drafted player by the Saints to wear 69, and his 78 games are the most of any New Orleans player to wear it. Mostly a reserve, Ackerman started just 18 of those 78 contests.
Anthony Hargrove didn't put up magnificent numbers during his 30 games in two years. During those regular season contests he'd have 6 sacks with 6 fumbles forced or recovered, including a touchdown. Most memorable was his strong postseason play that helped the Saints to a Super Bowl XLIV championship. Eric Olsen followed Hargrove in No. 69 with 16 games as a reserve in 2012 but only one game two years later.
Over the last decade, Zettel, Zuniga, Kentavius Street, Reed and Wesley have combined to play 20 games in the 69 jersey. Street had 17 of those in 2022, with 3.5 sacks and 5 stops for loss. After getting no snaps in his only game of 2025, Wesley is battling for a backup role on the New Orleans offensive front this preseason.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: 69 days until Saints opener: Every player to wear the No. 69 jersey