Cowboys' DeMarvion Overshown reveals how he convinced Jerry Jones to allow historic no. 0 jersey

The Dallas Cowboys' offseason has been relatively quiet, but they did make a historic decision. For the first time in franchise history, a player will don the #0 jersey, with sophomore star DeMarvion Overshown earning the coveted honor.

While it's an unfamiliar sight for a Cowboy to sport that jersey number, it's a familiar feeling for the linebacker as he wore the number during his college career at Texas.

During his appearance on the Up and Adams Show on Thursday, the 24-year-old was asked how he convinced Jerry Jones to give him the number. Overshown said:

"When I first came in, I think it was more so like people was expecting me to just get zero just based off of the fact that I wore zero in Texas. Like, OK, this is a sign. Like, zero's available in the NFL. He's coming to the Dallas Cowboys from Texas."

Overshown confessed that he wanted to sport the number during his rookie year but picked #13 instead because he wanted to earn the honor of being the first Cowboy to wear #0:

"As much as I wanted in my first year, you just don't give a rookie with nothing to show for in the league, especially a number that's highly wanted by veterans on the player. It's something that, you you want to make somebody earn... I earned it. I've done the right things to get it."

---

NFL teams without a player wearing #0: Demarvion Overshown ends Cowboys' hiatus

The NFL had outlawed wearing the #0 in 1973 but lifted the ban in the 2023 offseason. Following their amendment, 23 players switched to #0, most notably veterans like wide receiver Calvin Ridley, running back D'Andre Swift, and linebacker Roquan Smith.

The Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears, Washington Commanders, New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Cincinnati Bengals, and the Indianapolis Colts were the nine teams that had no player with #0. Cornerback Jace Whittaker wore the #0 jersey for the Commanders during the 2023 preseason but wasn't on the active roster for the campaign.

A year later, Washington did have a player donning #0, as rookie cornerback Mike Sainristil picked the number. The Patriots also let standout cornerback Christian Gonzalez switch to #0 last season.

With Demarvion Overshown joining the club, only six teams - The Chiefs, Packers, Bears, Steelers, Bengals, and Colts - are yet to have a player don the coveted number since the NFL lifted the ban on it in the 2023 offseason.

With the 2025 NFL draft around the corner, expect a few more teams left on the list to have their names scratched.