Giants Super Bowl Champ Breaks Silence on Abdul Carter’s Jersey Number Controversy — But His Surprising Reaction Has Fans Talking

He still can’t get a New York Giants legend to give up his jersey number, but Abdul Carter’s ongoing search at least made one Super Bowl winner from the franchise’s past chuckle.

Former Giants left tackle ‘Jumbo’ Elliott made clear edge-rusher Carter “can’t have 76. LOL!!” Elliott, who helped the 1990 Giants lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy, was responding to a post from author Gary Myers, who revealed why Carter won’t get to wear the No. 11 made famous by Phil Simms, Super Bowl MVP quarterback for the 1986 championship team.

Myers reported what he believes is “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. After hearing that Simms was agreeable, Carter had said it would be an honor to wear 11. LT already turned down Carter’s request to wear 56. Carter needs to create his legacy with his own number.”

As Myers pointed out, this is the second time Carter has been rebuffed in his attempts to don the uniform of an illustrious member of the Giants. The third-overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft had initially wanted to wear the No. 56, immortalized by one Lawrence Taylor, arguably the greatest player in franchise history.

LT was quick to snub the idea, urging Carter to forge his own legacy and make a different number the stuff of legend. Carter’s response was to target the 11 jersey he wore at his alma mater, Penn State, continuing a fine tradition for the number with the Nittany Lions, per SportsCenter.

Now, Carter must go searching again for the two digits or more he can hopefully make famous for Big Blue.

Abdul Carter Number Search Getting Comical

Carter wanting numbers worn by legends from the Giants’ modern era will naturally irk some fans. The inevitable and so-called controversy prompted ESPN’s Jordan Raanan to say “Let’s move on. Wearing 56 or 11 wouldn’t sit well with some fans. This is best for everyone. As L.T. said, they’ll support him. Go make your own legacy.”

This call for perspective hasn’t stopped others from wading into the numbers debate. Raanan responded to one warning about the Giants retiring too many numbers and running out by asking, “Run out of numbers? Who said they can’t open numbers into the 100s? 200s? There are plenty of numbers last I checked. One might say infinite.”

He also pointed out how times have changed, alterations charted by ever increasing jersey numbers: “There was a time where 99 was dumb for baseball. Now it’s cool.”

There’s something amusing about the furore surrounding numbers worn by former players. Just as there is about ex-players, no matter how great, getting precious about a jersey they haven’t worn in years.

No such compunction existed when 2024 sixth-overall pick Malik Nabers wanted to wear No. 1. It once belonged to Giants great Ray Flaherty, who led the league in receiving in 1932, two years before winning the NFL Championship.

Flaherty’s number had been retired, but his son gave his blessing for Nabers to make it active again. Carter has had no such luck, turning what should have been a minor development into an ongoing story.

Fortunately, Elliott sees the funny side.

Giants Super Bowl Winner Brings Levity to Number Drama

Elliott doesn’t seriously think Carter will go after 76, but this situation needs a light-hearted touch. Ironically, it was provided by one of the heavy hitters from the ’90 team.

That title was won by power football. Particularly on an offense defined by the brute force of 1988 second-round pick Elliott’s straight-ahead blocking on the edge.

He was the linchpin of a beefy O-line also featuring formidable guard William Roberts, center Bart Oates and right tackle Doug Riesenberg. This group bludgeoned the high-powered Buffalo Bills in a time of possession masterclass to help win Super Bowl 25.

That assured Elliott a legacy, including being named 60th among the 100 greatest players in Giants history. It’s up to Carter to start chasing his own spot among the greats.