The return of NASCAR?
Big Blue View’s Tony DelGenio asked a little while ago if the New York Giants should draft Penn State edge defender Abdul Carter at No. 3 if they have the chance.
Given the current roster, with Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux already in place on the edges, how would the Giants get Carter on the field enough to justify using the third overall pick to select him? It is a valid question.
Sports Illustrated NFL insider Albert Breer has provided a glimpse into the potential answer.
The working belief at the moment is that Cam Ward goes No. 1 to the Tennessee Titans and that both the Cleveland Browns, with the second pick, and the Giants pass on Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
The Browns are said to be leaning toward selecting Colorado wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter, which would leave the Giants with a chance to select Carter, the other player in this draft considered potentially transformational.
Breer believes “Hunter would be the cleanest pick” for the Giants. Why? Because the Giants could use help at both positions he plays, and being a two-way player gives any team that selects him two bites at the apple in trying to get maximum value from him.
“Carter’s a little bit of a more difficult fit,” Breer said. “But from what I understand they view it as workable. It’s a good problem to have.
“Remember, this is the franchise that once had Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck and Mathias Kiwanuka all on the same roster,” Breer said. “They actually drafted Mathias Kiwanuka, if you remember, with those other three playing at a very high level. Their feeling was you can’t have enough pass rushers.”
Breer reminded that Carter played off-ball linebacker until the 2024 season, and said that the Giants could plan to use him there on early downs and then using Carter, Thibodeaux, Burns and Dexter Lawrence to rush the passer
Steve Spagnuolo made all of that work. Can current defensive coordinator Shane Bowen make it work if the Giants take Carter?
“How terrifying could it be for an offensive line to have to deal with Brian Burns, Abdul Carter, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Dexter Lawrence in a sort of NASCAR-type package,” Breer said. “It’s not perfect. But it’s very workable if you believe Abdul Carter is as special as I think most people believe he is.”
Off-ball linebackers Bobby Okereke and Micah McFadden might not love losing playing time to Carter, but at least initially this would seem to be a solid plan. And one we might actually see come to fruition.
