Malik Nabers has been given the green light to bring No. 1 out of retirement and back onto the field by the family of Ray Flaherty.
The New York Giants’ star rookie receiver wore No. 9 throughout camp after being selected sixth overall at the 2024 NFL Draft, but found himself in need of a different number considering that was veteran kicker Graham Gano’s number.
His No. 8 he wore at LSU is also taken by quarterback Daniel Jones.
“Everybody else’s number was really taken,” Nabers said. “I looked into retired jerseys and No. 1 stood out. So I asked [co-owner] John Mara about it. He was like, ‘We could give it a shot.’ So we gave it a shot.”
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Mara spoke with Flaherty’s son, Ray Jr., and got the go-ahead to bring the number out of retirement.
This will be the first time that a Giants player will wear the No. 1 jersey since 1935, which was taken out of circulation by the team after Flaherty retired. It was the first retired jersey number in NFL history.
“I’m going to represent their family’s retired number well,” Nabers said. “I’m going to try my best. I’m grateful that they chose the opportunity to un-retire the jersey and let me wear it. I’m going to wear it with pride.”
Flaherty spent six seasons with the Giants from 1929 to 1935, compiling 41 receptions for 626 yards and 15 touchdowns. He led the NFL in 1932 with 21 receptions, 350 yards, and five scores.
He helped the Giants advance to three NFL title games from 1933-1935. In the 1934 NFL Championship Game, famously suggested to head coach Steve Owen that they wear sneakers in the icy conditions at the Polo Grounds against the Chicago Bears, which helped New York win its second-ever title, 30-13. The game is now known as the Sneakers Game.
He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1976.
“There were a few things,” Ray Flaherty Jr. told the team’s official website. “Probably one of the most important is I kind of polled my family. I’ve got two sons and a daughter. And, of course, that’s their grandfather. Initially, my daughter wasn’t that excited about it. And it was she that came around. Eventually, she said, ‘It might be lucky for him. That number one might be a good number for him.’ She acquiesced. We thought that would be the way to go.”
