Buffalo Bills History: Who Wore It – Number 17

Oct. 14, 2012; Glendale, AZ, USA; Detailed view of a Buffalo Bills helmet and footballs on the sidelines against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Today we move on to look at the players in Buffalo Bills history that have worn the number 17.

During the Bills history they have had 9 players wear the number 17.

We start when the Buffalo Bills just formed, 1960.  Bob Brodhead was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 1958 but he went active duty in the Armed Forces.  He was discharged in 1960 and joined the Bills.  He played for one game with the Bills and then moved on to the CFL for the rest of the year.  In 1961, he moved on to minor league football and played in the United Football League until 1966. He was then named the Business Manager for the Cleveland Browns at age 28.

In 1961 we see quarterback Warren Rabb wearing the number 17.  While in professional football, four years, he played with the Bills for two.  His final year in professional football was with the CFL and the Montreal Alouettes in 1963.

Ten years pass before we see the number 17 for the Bills again.  Mike Taliaferro, quarterback, played for the Bills in 1972.  He played for 8 seasons in the AFL and NFL and finished with the Bills.

Gary Marangi wore the number 17 starting in 1974 until 1976 for the Bills.  Marangi only played for the Bills during his playing days.  He was drafted in 1974 in the 3rd round by the Bills.  He replaced Joe Ferguson, after Ferguson sustained a back injury in the 7th game of the 1976 season.  Marangi finished the season for the Bills and finished with a 35.3 completion percentage.  He holds the worse all-time completion percentage for QBs with 200 attempts.

Matt Robinson is the next to be seen with 17 on his back.  Robinson played for the Bills from 1981-1982.  He finished his professional career with the Bills in 1982 and moved on to the United Football League in 1984 and 1985.

The Players Strike Year is the next time we see the number 17 in a Bills uniform.  1987, Willie Totten, quarterback, was first seen in the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts.  He is then brought to the Bills during the strike.  After, he was released by the Bills and moved on to the Arena Football League until 1991.

Shayne Graham is the next Bills player to don the number 17.  He came into the league as an undrafted free agent via the New Orleans Saints in 2000.  Graham was released during the preseason by the Saints and was brought to the Seahawks to compete against Rian Lindell.  Lindell was subsequently retained and Graham was released.  He then was seen in Buffalo replacing rookie kicker Jake Arians after Arians missed some key FGs.  Graham finished the last 6 games with Buffalo going 6-8 on FGs.  He was replaced by Mike Hollis at the end of the season.  Graham has played for 15 different teams and is currently with the New Orleans Saints.

Wide Receivers Justin Jenkins and Paul Hubbard round out the 9 players that played for the Bills and wore number 17.  Jenkins played for the Bills from 2007-2009 and Hubbard played for them in 2010.  Jenkins currently can be seen in the X-Factor Indoor League with the Florida Marine Raiders.  Hubbard is currently in the CFL with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.