Giants Notebook: By the numbers, why Alex Tanney, and more

Here's a round-up of some odds and ends from the Giants open locker room on Monday.

By the Numbers

If you’ve been waiting to find out if rookie quarterback Daniel Jones would switch from No. 8, which he’s worn since being drafted by the Giants, to No. 17, the number he wore in college, wonder no more.

Jones told some reporters today that he plans to keep No. 8, which he also once noted was the sum of one and seven.

Jones could have had No. 17, previously worn by quarterback Kyle Lauletta, but instead, that number has been re-assigned to receiver Cody Core, whom the Giants were awarded off waivers Sunday.

Speaking of jersey numbers, safety Julian Love switched from No. 27 to No. 24. New tight end Eric Tomlinson will wear No. 94 and offensive tackle Eric Smith will wear No. 79.

Why Alex Tanney?

That's one of a few burning questions people had about the Giants' roster decisions made over the weekend.

There were some people who thought perhaps the Giants would go with just Eli Manning and Daniel Jones. Then there were others who thought that Kyle Lauletta had outplayed Tanney.

Head coach Pat Shurmur had answers for both questions--sort of.

"I think it makes sense for us to keep three quarterbacks," he said when asked about the numbers. "That’s why we did it. (General Manager) Dave (Gettleman) was in agreement. We felt like that’s the best thing for our (quarterback) room."

Okay, so why Tanney over Laueltta?

"There are things behind the scenes where we felt like Alex was doing well," Shurmur said, neglecting to elaborate.

"I think Kyle made great progress. We were really pleased with what (Kyle) had done. We just felt like it was the best thing for us to move forward with Tanney."

Giants Trade B.J. Goodson

As reported earlier, the Giants, who had announced their plans to waive linebacker B.J. Goodson, traded the linebacker to the Packers for what is believed to be a Day 3 draft pick.

Goodson, who fell behind Tae Davis and Ryan Connelly on the depth chart, was a surprise survivor on the initial 53-man roster, but ended up not being in the team's long-term plans after all.

"I don’t think anything changed," Shurmur said when asked about Goodson's status.

"He got an opportunity to go somewhere where the team wants you to be there, and they are obviously bringing him in for a reason. I have nothing but respect (for him) and I wish him well in his journey with Green Bay. I hope he goes up there and does really well, and helps the team play at a high level."

The full trade is Goodson and a conditional seventh-round pick to the Packers in exchange for a conditional seventh-rounder that the Packers acquired from Baltimore.

In other words, if Goodson meets certain conditions, the Packers will send the Giants the better of their seventh-round picks.

Russell Stops By

Receiver Alonzo Russell, another player who initially made the 53-man roster only to lose his spot a day later, quietly slipped into the Giants locker room during the open media session to collect some personal belongings.

Russell stopped to chat with his former teammates as he gathered his items. One teammate was overheard expressing shock that Russell had been let go by the team.

He isn't the only one.

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