Very little has gone according to plan for the New York Giants in 2025.
They’re 2-11, have fired their head coach and defensive coordinator as they head into yet another off-season on the coaching carousel. That record — or the consequences — might not be much of a surprise. But the fact that the Giants’ defense has been the team’s Achilles’ heel counts as a definite surprise.
The Giants’ decision to draft Penn State edge defender Abdul Carter with the third overall pick was widely praised as “chalk”. That is, so obvious a move that Joe Schoen would have been roundly criticized if he hadn’t drafted Carter. But while Carter has been disruptive, he has yet to come close to living up to expectations. That’s culminated in Carter being benched to start the game against the Green Bay Packers, and now for the entire first quarter against the New England Patriots.
Carter on his latest benching
Carter was conspicuous in his absence for the first quarter against the Patriots and it was immediately remarked upon that Chauncey Golston got the start while Carter was in a heavy jacket on the sideline. We soon learned that Carter had been benched in a “coach’s decision” for the second time since Mike Kafka became the Giants’ interim head coach.
Kafka said on Tuesday that he would be keeping the details of Carter’s infraction in-house. Carter apparently missed a meeting.
Carter saidhe has growing up to do.
“I’m learning a lot in terms of just being a man, being in the NFL, just going through it,” Carter said. “I’m learning a lot and I’m glad I’m going through it so I can be better prepared in the future.”
Carter has reportedly had coaches and teammates alike pull him aside and implore him to ‘grow up.’ While the advice is harsh, the rookie seems to be taking it with the proper mindset and in the spirit with which it’s given.
“The guys who say that, those are guys I look up to, guys I respect,” he said. “If they say something like that, I’m going to look at myself first, like ‘alright, what am I doing? How can I get better?’ and prove to them that I can earn their respect and go out and be who I’m supposed to be.”
Carter has also gotten criticisms from Giants’ greats like Carl Banks. Banks is obviously a respected voice, but his criticisms are all the more pointed considering Carter wants to be compared to Banks’ former teammate, Lawrence Taylor.
“I would say just what I do on the field after I’ve been through all this adversity, all the controversy,” Carter said, when asked how he would respond to Banks’ criticism. “How do I respond? Do I shy away from it or do I accept the challenge and become better and improve, keep improving and be the man I’m supposed to be?”
Once Carter got on the field, he once again flashed the caliber of player he could be. In short order he blew up a run play, got his first (official) sack, and drew a holding call. Carter had an immediate impact, yet is still far away from his potential.
Carter’s plays is a microcosm of the Giants’ as a whole. Carter mentioned after the game that the Giants’ latest defensive embarrassment was (once again) due to missing on the little things.
“We hurt ourselves,” he said. “A lot of the plays that happened, the big plays that we gave up, there are things that we didn’t do right, things that we can control, so it’s just doing our job, doing what we’re supposed to do.”
Hopefully the Giants’ next coaching staff will get the team concentrating on the details, so they’re in position to play up to their potential.
To say that Carter has had a frustrating rookie campaign would be an understatement. He’s flashed all the traits that made him the third overall pick, with incredible burst and bend off the line of scrimmage. He’s been the most impressive rookie pass rusher when it comes to firing off the line of scrimmage and pressuring the quarterback, but has yet to consistently finish his rushes.
Carter says he’s going to use the bye week to improve where he can in a short period to try and finish the season on a high note.
“For sure do some self-reflection about some things I can improve on,” he said. “Come back stronger, so after the bye week I can finish the last four weeks of the season strong.”
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