Film breakdown: How high is Abdul Carter’s ceiling?

Let’s look at the potential of the former Penn State edge defender

The New York Giants now arguably have the best pass rush in the NFL with the addition of Penn State edge defender Abdul Carter, who GM Joe Schoen and company selected with the third overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Carter joins Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and Dexter Lawrence up front.

Carter played just one season as an edge defender for the Nittany Lions, and he recorded 12 sacks, 66 pressures, and 24 tackles for a loss while being the center of attention in Tom Allen’s defense. Carter was used all over the defensive front. Not only will he add to the overall talent of Shane Bowen’s defense, but his versatility will allow Bowen to dive deep into his bag of tricks with twists/stunts and simulated pressure packages.

Here is my evaluation on Abdul Carter:

Strengths

• Chiseled elite athlete with rare suddenness and explosiveness
• Rare agility and change of direction – gets very low into his rush
• Insane acceleration – smooth!
• Avoids contact well – is like NEO from the Matrix when rushing
• Urgent, Urgent, Urgent mover
• Amazing bend/control to contort his body while cornering up the arc
• Quick feet set OL up for failure – understands how to set OL up
• Can get very low with his rush – knee scraping the deck as he orients his hips into the pocket
• Rare ability to flatten at the top of the arc
• Does an excellent job absorbing contact up the arc
• Elite inside spin move assists his incredible burst up the arc – keeps OT honest
• Very good hand usage to keep distance and separate from OL
• Feet and hands work well together when rushing passer
• Beautiful dip/rip combination to win the edge with elite speed
• Flashed a variety of pass rushing moves
• Good overall play strength with excellent closing burst into contact
• Flashed power rush moves
• Insanely smart and natural pass rusher
• Understands how to angle his body and avoid contact while rushing
• Only played one true year at edge – upside is through the roof
• Can play all over the defensive front – was a very good LB in 2022/2023
• Solid overall run defender who still has room to improve (as LB/EDGE)
• Quick backside pursuit – immediate read defender
• Crashes the backside with authority – dangerous unblocked player
• Very aggressive style of play – good force into contact
• Solid coverage player with plenty of movement skills/fluidity to operate zone drops
• Controlled enough to handle man responsibilities if asked
• Very versatile player who can handle several aspects of front seven play
• Has room to grow into his frame
• Just turned 21 years old

Weaknesses

• Seems smaller than his listed size (some speculate he’s sub-235)
• Not the longest edge
• Still a little raw as an edgerusher
• Can run himself out of fit, trying to win up the arc
• Has good overall play strength but it can be thwarted by long/strong and technically sound offensive tackles
• Misses a lot of tackles – 19.1% missed tackle rate in college
• 2023 tape showed mistakes at LB – is not a technically sound run defender at the edge or LB
• Could work on tackling fundamentals to become more secure
• Not a bad run defender but is clearly more of a pass rusher
• Needs more time learning how to anchor vs. the run/recognize rushing schemes
• Deconstructing blocks once engaged in base situations needs to improve vs. the run
• Relies heavily on impressive movement skills to avoid lock up with OTs vs. the run
• Was charged with a misdemeanor for assaulting a tow truck driver in 2024

There are few players in recent NFL drafts who have the type of pass rushing upside as Abdul Carter, which is one of the many reasons why he’s compared to Micah Parsons, among the obvious ones. Carter is an insanely sudden and quick athlete with a NEO like ability to avoid contact and contort his body around the punches of offensive tackles. Carter keeps forward momentum with elite control while exploding up the rushing arc. Few players win high side like Carter, and even fewer use their feet/hands so well together.

He gets his hips oriented into the pocket so fast and gets so low to avoid contact; when he is contacted, he does a good job staying balanced or angling his body to mitigate the strength of the contact. Carter is DANGEROUS in a phone booth, with a sensational inside spin move and rare speed to win through either shoulder. He also flashes power rush moves, albeit he’s more finesse right now. BUT his finesse is so fantastic, that offensive lineman are more susceptible to the power he does possess, for their ability to frame and engage Carter are hindered by his raw talent.

Carter will be selected as an edge to rush the passer and use his elite physical traits. He does offer value as a linebacker for a creative defensive coordinator; his best utilization as a LB is stacked, allowing him to scrape/flow to the football relatively unscathed. His eyes/ability to trigger are accentuated by his elite burst, albeit he’s still wild and did misjudge his path into the backfield as a LB prior to 2024.

I don’t want to say Carter is fool-proof, even though I love his tape and ability. There’s a non-zero chance that Carter may be targeted on early downs and could be exposed against better – more physical – teams in the trenches. On the flip side, he has room to grow into his body, he’s insanely athletic, and he only has one year as an EDGE. Sure, a defensive coordinator may have to get creative if Carter struggles to consistently defend the run, but his run defense ability in college doesn’t suggest a liability, just not a certainty; and his pass rushing skills are through the roof. It’s something to acknowledge, but not a deal breaker by any means.

If Carter works on his block shedding ability and his eyes to perceive the offensive intentions, along with adding some strength, he will be a massive asset as a run defender; and these are achievable feats considering the traits Carter possesses. There aren’t many players in consideration for the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, but Carter is one of them and it’s easy to see why.

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