The New York Giants made Abdul Carter the third overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The 21-year-old was considered one of the best prospects in this class, regardless of position. He figures to have a long-term future in New York and the NFL.
Following his selection, speculations on which jersey number Carter would wear are heating up. He requested to wear No. 56, but New York retired that number in honor of Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor. Taylor rejected Carter’s request, prompting another Giants legend, Phil Simms, to throw his retired No. 11 in the mix.
Carter also wore the No. 11 during his college career, and it would have been a perfect continuation for the defender. However, shortly after agreeing to let him wear the number, Simms backtracked on his offer.
Phil Simms Explains Why He Won’t Be Offering No.11 Jersey To Abdul Carter
Every NFL team handles retired jersey numbers differently. The Pittsburgh Steelers, for example, only have three officially retired jersey numbers, but they have several unofficially retired numbers, like Ben Roethlisberger’s No. 7, that they do not hand out.
The Giants, on the other hand, are tied with the Chicago Bears for the most retired numbers with 14. If a new player wants to wear one of the officially retired numbers, they must get permission from the former player, and while Simms had no issue giving up the number, he said his family didn’t agree.
“Hey, look, I told some of my friends and people around me I’d let him have it in a second. Can you just help it a little and make it better? I think it would be a lot of fun; it wouldn’t bother me,” said Simms on the FanDuel TV podcast.
If Abdul Carter or Jaxson Dart request it…
Will the Giants #11 jersey stay retired? 🤔@TheCousinSal @PhilSimmsQB | #NYGiants pic.twitter.com/CZzbl3k6Ef
— FanDuel TV (@FanDuelTV)
While Simms noted that Carter hadn’t asked for it, the two-time Super Bowl champion stated he would have permitted it if his agent didn’t stop him.
“But my wife, the boys didn’t say anything, but my agent, all of them, ‘Don’t you dare give up that jersey number.’ First off, I don’t think Abdul Carter’s gonna ask for it, but if he had, if it was up to me, I probably would have,” added Simms.
Breaking: Good news for Giants fans who believe in tradition. Phil Simms' #11 will not be coming out of retirement for first-round pick Abdul Carter, who wore 11 at Penn State. Simms said on a podcast he would be okay with it but he told me tonight he was outvoted by his family.…
— Gary Myers (@GaryMyersNY)
Giants reporter Gary Myers also confirmed that Simms wouldn’t give up his number to Carter after his family outvoted him, meaning the former Nittany Lion will have to carve out his legacy with his own number, and hopefully, that is retired some day as well.
Simms was also the first-round pick of the Giants but was picked four spots later at seventh overall in the 1979 NFL Draft out of Morehead State. He spent 14 seasons playing for New York. He not only helped the Giants win two Super Bowls but was also named the MVP of Super Bowl XXI.
That honor came after he set Super Bowl records for the highest completion percentage (88.0%) and the highest passer rating (150.9). Both of those records still stand.
Despite his consistent success, he is widely considered one of the most underrated quarterbacks in NFL history. He completed 2,576 passes for 33,462 yards and 199 touchdowns during his career.
