After aspiring for the jersey numbers of two franchise greats, New York Giants rookie Abdul Carter set his sights lower on a number he can make his own.
The Giants announced on Friday that Carter, the No. 3 overall selection in this year’s NFL Draft, will wear No. 51 for the team’s minicamp this weekend. Previously, Carter had inquired about wearing No. 56, which was retired by the Giants for linebacker Lawrence Taylor. However, the franchise’s all-time sack leader (with 142) turned down the request.
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Carter then tried to get No. 11, which was his number at Penn State. Yet that number was also retired for quarterback Phil Simms, who won two Super Bowl championships and was the team’s all-time leader in passing yards and touchdowns when he retired. (His 33,462 yards and 199 TDs were eventually surpassed by Eli Manning.)
Simms appeared willing to let Carter bring No. 11 out of retirement, but his family voted down the idea.
Whether Carter attempted to move on to the numbers of other franchise greats, such as Manning, Michael Strahan, Harry Carson, Carl Banks or Mark Bavaro isn’t known. Getting turned down twice rather publicly — and risking alienating fans — may have been enough for him. Or perhaps he realized that Taylor was right in saying that Carter should take a different number and make it famous on his own.
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The Giants didn’t retire No. 51, so Carter didn’t have to seek the approval of the last player to wear it. Azeez Olujari played four seasons for the team and left for the Philadelphia Eagles in free agency. Carter now has an opportunity to make sure that number is associated with him and no one else in team history.
That is, if Carter keeps No. 51. As the Giants pointed out in their announcement, these numbers could change after minicamp, whether due to player preference or roster churn. Quarterback Jaxson Dart, the team’s other first-round pick, chose No. 6. Defensive tackle Darius Alexander (a third-round pick) will wear No. 91, while running back Cam Skattebo (a fourth-rounder) has No. 44.
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