Veteran cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha is entering his first season with the San Francisco 49ers, and he would like to keep wearing the number he has worn throughout his entire 10-year NFL career. Unfortunately for him, it appears the number cannot be purchased because running back Anthony Dixon is driving a hard bargain.
On Tuesday, Dixon told reporters he likes No. 24 so much that he refused to sell it for $24,000.
“We tried to go $24K for 24, but I told him, ‘No, I’m going to keep my 24,'” he said, per CSNPhilly.com. “When he first got here, he asked me what I thought of him wearing No. 24, and I said, ‘Well, you can wear it.’ I wanted him to look good. He asked if he could wear it so he doesn’t look like a bum. Every other number was already taken.”
Dixon said he is hesitant to sell the number because he had to go through a lot of trouble to get it when he first joined the Niners four years ago. He was issued No. 33 at the time, and fullback Michael Robinson was wearing No. 24.
“I worked hard to get that number when I first got here,” Dixon said. “I worked hard to get it off somebody else. I’ve been No. 24 since high school and college.”
Considering most of us could buy a new car for $24,000, it sounds ridiculous that someone would turn down that kind of cash for a jersey number. We have heard of players trading a year’s supply of diapers for a jersey number, but apparently Dixon is a tough man to negotiate with. Although, he did say he is “not ready to sell, yet.” Maybe “yet” means Asomugha is going to have to offer the type of money Darrelle Revis offered in Tampa Bay in order to reach a deal.
H/T Eye on Football
