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Jordan Raanan, ESPN Staff WriterAug 28, 2024, 08:29 PM ET
- Jordan Raanan is a reporter for NFL Nation at ESPN. Raanan covers the New York Giants. You can follow him via Twitter @JordanRaanan.
The New York Giants are unretiring the No. 1 for rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers to wear, the team announced Wednesday.
The sixth overall pick in this year’s draft received permission from the family of the late Ray Flaherty to wear the number.
Nabers wore No. 8 at LSU; quarterback Daniel Jones wears that for the Giants. Nabers wore No. 9 this spring and summer, but that was always going to change with that being the number of veteran kicker Graham Gano.
The No. 1 for the Giants was the first number retired in professional football history.
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“Thank you to the Flaherty family for allowing me to wear Number 1 for the New York Giants,” Nabers said in a statement released by the team. “I understand the responsibility, and I will do everything in my power to honor the Flaherty family and this organization.
“I will wear the number with great pride. Can’t wait for the season to start.”
Flaherty, who played end, joined the Giants in 1929 and, after two years as the Gonzaga basketball coach, returned from 1931 to ’35. He later became a professional football coach, and is credited with the behind-the-line screen pass and the two-platoon substitution system.
Flaherty was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1976.
Nabers’ number has been a topic of discussion since he joined the team. He always seemed to be looking for a single-digit number before settling on No. 1.
