Giants Ready To Unleash 'Uncanny' Abdul Carter

The New York Giants’ Week 17 win over the Indianapolis Colts sent the fanbase into a frenzy. The prospect of losing the No. 1 pick and the quarterback that would come with it was unbearable for a team in disarray. Moving down to No. 3 opened up the door for both Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders to be off the board, destining the Giants to two-way star Travis Hunter or edge rusher Abdul Carter.

In the months that followed, Ward became the No. 1 pick, Sanders fell to the fifth round, and New York drafted Carter. It hasn’t taken long for that to seem like a blessing in disguise.

Carter is perhaps the best prospect in his class, and if it wasn’t for one of the most unique talents in recent memory, he would have been the top non-quarterback taken. Carter, like Penn State dynamo Micah Parsons before him, played off-ball linebacker before rushing the passer more in his final collegiate season.

Yet, his nuance and technical prowess pair with his athleticism to make him a safe bet for stardom.

Giants defensive line coach Andre Patterson praised his “uncanny” skill set during minicamp.

“I think he’s explosive. He’s quick. He’s sudden,” Patterson said, via Big Blue View. “But I think the thing that’s unique in him, when they had me look at him and evaluate him before the draft, is he has an uncanny ability to feel how to win at the top of the rush.”

Carter exceeded expectations as a pass rusher, posting 12 sacks and a country-leading 24 tackles for loss in his first season on the edge. He played through injuries and managed to take down the Big Ten’s best tackles with technique that generally takes years to hone.

“A lot of guys blow the rush when they get to the top of the rush,” Patterson said. “A lot of guys are quick. A lot of guys are explosive. A lot of guys can go edge to edge. But when they get to the top of the rush, they become mechanical. And as a coach, it takes guys two, three, four years to figure that out.

“Well, he was born with that. That’s the thing that he was born with, that just naturally when he gets to the top of the rush, he has a feel of where to go. And I think that’s the thing that makes him unique.”

In New York, the pressure to perform will always be high. But edge rushers Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns take some of that weight off his shoulders, taking away defensive attention and allowing him to be deployed in creative subpackages. Defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence demands double teams, too, putting Carter in more favorable situations.

He’s set up to succeed, and Patterson is convinced his understudy has the skills to hit the ground running. Carter, of course, isn’t a quarterback. But if he can recreate the impact receiver Malik Nabers had in 2024, it won’t take long for him to make good on his draft capital and ensure the New York faithful forgive their team for that late-season win.