GM Joe Schoen says Carter has been on the Giants’ radar for years
New York Giants GM Joe Schoen said before the 2025 NFL Draft that he would not want to pass on an opportunity to draft a blue chip player.
He didn’t. Schoen didn’t hesitate on Thursday when the opportunity arrived to select Penn State edge defender Abdul Carter with the third overall pick.
“That’s a special talent,” Schoen said moments after the pick was announced. “Just fortunate to be able to land him.”
Schoen said Carter is a player the Giants have been aware of since his freshman year at Penn State.
“Abdul’s one of those guys that, as a true freshman, jumps off the jump. If you’re just watching anybody against Penn State, he’s playing off the ball. He’s moving at a different speed than everybody else,” Schoen said.
“As personnel folks, you’re always, man, who’s that freshman? That guy’s jumping off the film already. He was one of those guys.
“He was on our radar from early on.”
Carter will join edge defenders Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux, as well as star defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence to make a potentially dominant defensive front.
“You can’t have enough pass rushers,” Schoen said. “Between those guys coming off the edge, Dex in the middle, Nacho [Rakeem Nunez-Roches], Roy Robertson-Harris, I’m excited about the D-line. We added [Jeremiah] Ledbetter. Chauncey Golston.
“We’re turning the corner where there’s some depth at some of these positions. That will really help us.”
Schoen said it became apparent around the time of the Colorado Pro Day that Travis Hunter would go No. 2 and the Giants would have a chance to select Carter.
He said the pre-draft process made selecting Carter “an easy decision on draft day.”
Still, the Giants milked the clock a bit before turning in the card for Carter.
“We were high-fiving and hugging. That’s what that was,” Schoen said. “Then we got on the phone.”
There have been questions about how the Giants would get Carter, Thibodeaux and Burns enough snaps.
Head coach Brian Daboll said that “potentially” the three can play together.
“I think he has position flexibility. He can do a variety of things. He’s extremely athletic,” Daboll said. “He’s played off the ball. How we deploy him, we’ll have to get him here and work with him.
“Fun guy to evaluate. Tough guy to block.”
Carter, of course, has drawn comparisons to former Penn State and current Dallas Cowboy star edge defender Micah Parsons.
“You saw what he can do when he’s rushing the edge. The issues that he creates with his get off and bend. He’s really unique,” Daboll said. “He’s an exceptional athlete.”
The Giants are happy not only to add Carter’s talent, but the attitude he plays with.
“We were talking on the way down in terms of adding dawgs and a certain type of mentality,” Schoen said. “I would say two years in a row with Malik’s [Nabers] competitiveness and the toughness that he plays with. Then you add another guy like that in the first round.
“Abdul Carter, the motor that he plays with, the toughness and the violence, that can really help develop an identity.”
