The best Dallas Cowboys player to wear No. 16 helped a legend score his first NFL TD

Welcome back to our series on the best Dallas Cowboys players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.

As it went with No. 15, the list here at No. 16 certainly isn't the sexiest we'll see throughout this series. But we've got to do our due diligence anyway and pick a winner, so let's have a quick look at everyone who's worn the number for America's Team.

Matt Cassel, QB
Will Grier, QB
T.Y. Hilton, WR
Damon Hodge, WR
Jesse Holley, WR
Sam Howell, QB
Ryan Leaf, QB
Vince Mayle, WR
Jalen Moreno-Cropper, WR
Steve Pelluer, QB
Vinny Testaverde, QB

There are a couple high-profile names in here like Matt Cassell and Vinny Testaverde, and while his name might not be notable for good reasons, we've got Ryan Leaf here in as well. From purely a talent perspective, Testaverde would be the call, but seeing as he only spent one of his 21 NFL seasons in Dallas, going 5-10 in 2004 and throwing for 3,532 yards with 17 touchdowns against a league-high 20 interceptions.

As such, basically by default, we're rolling with Steve Pelluer, who wore No. 16 for his entire five-year stretch with the Cowboys from 1984 to 1988.

Steve Pelluer threw Michael Irvin his first-ever NFL touchdown

The Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year at Washington in 1983, Pelluer was taken by the Cowboys in the fifth round of the 1984 NFL Draft with the 113th overall selection.

The Yakima native only appeared in three games over his first two years, as he was the third-string quarterback behind Danny White and Gary Hogeboom, although he did engineer a game-winning drive during the 1985 season in a Week 15 victory over the New York Giants that clinched the NFC East.

With Hogeboom gone in 1986, Pelluer was promoted to QB2 and took over QB1 duties when White was injured midway through the year. He showed some flashes of brilliance here and there, but from an overall standpoint, things didn't go very well, as he went just 3-6 while completing just 56.9 percent of his passes for 2,727 yards with eight touchdowns against 17 picks.

He fared a bit better in his four starts in 1987, going 2-2 with three touchdowns against only two interceptions, which helped him earn the starting job in 1988. And in the season opener of that '88 campaign, he was responsible for helping rookie Michael Irvin score his first NFL touchdown, as the two connected for a 35-yard score in a 24-21 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Pelluer again struggled with his accuracy, completing just 56.3 percent of his passes and throwing 19 interceptions, but he did throw for 3,139 yards and 17 touchdowns that year, which turned out to be his last with the Cowboys, as the organization underwent a massive overhaul when Jerry Jones bought the team in early 1989. He closed out his career playing two seasons for the Kansas City Chiefs.

In his five seasons with Dallas, Pelluer threw for 6,555 yards, which currently has him in eighth place on the all-time franchise list, with his 28 touchdown passes being good for 11th. They're not elite numbers by any stretch, but they're at least good enough to take this title as the best Cowboys player to wear No. 16.

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This list will be updated daily until all 100 entries are complete, so please be sure to check back in with The Landry Hat for updates.

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Steve Pelluer threw Michael Irvin his first-ever NFL touchdown

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