Next Retired Numbers (Football, Part II)

I have good news everybody!  Abdul Carter picked a number!  He found one that isn't retired that I guess he deemed acceptable--51!  Thank goodness that's over!  I don't know how I would've been able to go on not knowing which retired number Carter would ask for next.  But don't worry Eli Manning and Michael Strahan, you're safe.

Of course, the one good thing about the Abdul Carter number saga was that it inspired this recent series.  Our last installment featured the "next" retired number for each franchise in the AFC (I put "next" in quotes since some teams don't retire numbers).  Today, it's the NFC's turn.  Now, I'm just counting down the days until the Giants retire No. 51.

Cardinals: 11 Larry Fitzgerald-It's actually kind of surprising that this hasn't happened yet.  They may be waiting until he's elected to the Hall of Fame next year.  Larry Fitzgerald isn't just the best player in Cardinals history and the face of the franchise for more than a decade.  He's one of the greatest wide receivers ever to play in the NFL.

Falcons: 21 Deion Sanders-Atlanta is one of the teams that doesn't retire numbers.  But that's no fun, so we're gonna act like they do.  If they did retire numbers, Tommy Nobis, the original Falcon, would certainly have his No. 60 retired.  He's not the greatest player in Falcons history, though.  That would be Shadeur's dad (just when I thought the Abdul Carter number drama would be the most ridiculous thing coming out of the NFL Draft, here comes that Colorado fan with his ridiculous lawsuit).  Anyway, if the Falcons retired number, Deion's either would be already or would be next.

Panthers: 90 Julius Peppers-Sam Mills was the first Panther to have his number retired.  So far, he's the only one.  An argument could definitely be made that Julius Peppers should join him.  Peppers is arguably the greatest player in Panthers history and spent the majority of his Hall of Fame career playing in Carolina.

Bears: 50 Mike Singletary-The Bears have more retired numbers than anybody, which makes sense considering their rich history.  The crazy thing is they could easily have more.  Nobody from that historic "46 Defense" has been honored.  Let's rectify that and retire No. 50 for Hall of Fame middle linebacker Mike Singletary.  Then we'll get to Richard Dent and Brian Urlacher.

Cowboys: 4 Dak Prescott-Here we have a problem.  Because the Cowboys don't retire numbers.  If they did, they'd have a lot.  So, we'll just act like they've been retiring numbers this whole time and use their Ring of Honor as the de facto list.  Their lack of recent success certainly limits the options, and you've gotta think that anyone from the 90s who'd be honored already has been.  Which leaves us with Cowboys of recent vintage.  Of that group, Dak Prescott seems the most likely.

Lions: 97 Aidan Hutchinson-If this momentum continues in Detroit, and there's no reason to believe it won't, I'd envision several members of the current Lions who'll eventually have their numbers retired.  Especially when/if they finally get to the franchise's first Super Bowl.  Anyway, it was a tough call between Hutchinson and Jared Goff.  The Stafford-for-Goff trade is what started this going, but it really took off when they drafted Hutchinson.  (Although, Goff will likely retire first.)

Packers: 12 Aaron Rodgers-Despite how things ended in Green Bay, there's no doubt the Packers will retire No. 12 as soon as Rodgers officially retires.  It might even be as early as this season (although, he needs to decide quick so the NFL can schedule it on Sunday Night Football).  Although, it did take them a few years to retire Brett Favre's No. 4, so maybe it won't be right away.  Regardless, it's the next number that will be retired at Lambeau.

Rams: 13 Kurt Warner-Every player whose number the Rams have retired is in the Hall of Fame.  Kurt Warner is in the Hall of Fame because of what he did in a Rams uniform.  Sure, he did it in St. Louis, but Marshall Faulk and Isaac Bruce have their numbers retired, so that's clearly not disqualifying (nor should it be).  It's also likely that Aaron Donald's No. 99 will be retired by the Rams sometime relatively soon.

Vikings: 84 Randy Moss-Remember how good the 1998 Vikings were?  They had two Hall of Fame wide receivers on that team.  Randy Moss was the Rookie of the Year that season.  Cris Carter's No. 80 has already been retired.  Time to do the same thing with No. 84.  It would be only fitting.  Especially with Moss' recent health problems.

Saints: 9 Drew Brees-New Orleans used to retire numbers, but no longer does.  The Saints have actually put their retired numbers back in circulation.  We'll act like they do, though.  And, like Larry Fitzgerald in Arizona, Drew Brees would either already have his number retired or would have the ceremony pretty much right after his induction in Canton.

Giants: 53 Harry Carson-No. 51 for Ahmad Carter!  I'm just kidding.  Maybe someday.  That was LT's entire point!  Anyway, since nobody current or recent is remotely close to deserving, let's go way back.  The 2026 season is the 40th anniversary of that legendary 1986 team.  Why not honor their defensive captain and retire Harry Carson's No. 53?

Eagles: 62 Jason Kelce-While it may seem like there's some recency bias in this selection, there really isn't.  It's an appreciation of what Jason Kelce meant for the organization as one of the best offensive linemen in football for his entire career.  The only reason the "Tush Push" even became a thing is because of how good Jason Kelce was.  Don't be surprised if he gets elected to the Hall of Fame.  Even if he doesn't, don't be surprised if the Eagles retire No. 62.

49ers: 97 Nick Bosa-With all of their success through the years, you'd figure the 49ers have a lot of retired numbers.  And you'd be right.  Outside of maybe Terrell Owens, there aren't really any retired 49ers who deserve it and haven't already had their number retired.  Which leaves us with current players.  And, when all is said and done, Nick Bosa will likely be among the franchise's all-time leaders in most defensive categories.

Seahawks: 3 Russell Wilson-Sure, the Giants' new starting quarterback has sucked since he left Seattle.  But there's no denying how good he was during his prime with the Seahawks.  They won a Super Bowl, should've won another, and were good every year for a while.  So was their quarterback.  There are guys from that Legion of Boom defense who could be honored, too, but Wilson was the face of those teams.

Buccaneers: 20 Ronde Barber-An argument could be made for Tom Brady, despite the fact that he only played three years in Tampa.  But, ultimately, I couldn't do it.  Not when there are still members of that legendary defense from the late 90s/early 2000s who deserve it before him.  Frankly, it's ridiculous that Ronde Barber's number hasn't been retired already.  He retired in 2012 after spending his entire 16-year career with the Bucs.

Commanders: 81 Art Monk-Until 2020, Sammy Baugh's number was the only one that had been retired in Washington.  If that sounds ridiculous, that's because it is.  They've been playing catch-up since then, retiring the numbers of Bobby Mitchell, Sean Taylor, Sonny Jurgensen and Darrell Green (it took them more than 20 years to retire Darrell Green's number, and he's arguably the best player in franchise history).  Anyway, since they're still playing catch-up, how about another guy from the Joe Gibbs Era?  Art Monk.