Penn State's Abdul Carter happily would suit up for Giants despite lifelong Eagles fandom

INDIANAPOLIS — The Giants have spent most of the last year as the butt of just about every joke and meme for letting their best player go to Philadelphia and win it all. They may finally have a chance to avenge themselves in this draft by plucking away one of Philly’s best products . . . and some say the top player in this draft.

Abdul Carter, the edge rusher from Penn State, grew up in Philadelphia and was such a big Eagles backer that he attended their most recent Super Bowl win with his father.

“It was dope,” he said of that experience on Wednesday at the NFL Combine. “I really just got to enjoy my last year being a fan, being from Philly born and raised, supporting the Eagles my whole life.”

Come April, though, that allegiance is gone.

“Whatever team drafts me, I’ll be loyal to that team,” he said.

Even if it’s the Giants?

“They’re going to get my best,” he said. “My best only. Whatever team I’m on will get my best.”

Carter’s position probably isn’t at the top of the Giants’ long list of priorities. They already have two capable edge rushers in Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux and have needs elsewhere, most glaringly quarterback and cornerback. But there is a scenario in which the Giants can’t (or won’t) land a passer with the third overall pick, in which Travis Hunter is already selected, and Carter is staring at them while they are on the clock.

He could become one of the top consolation prizes in Giants history.

“Carter is an electric edge rusher,” NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah said. “He has average height and bulk, but he has an elite burst and his ability to flatten at the top of his rush is special. He gets a lot of early wins because of that speed, and he also has a nifty swipe/rip move . . . He’s a blur when chasing plays down on the back side. Overall, Carter can take over and completely wreck an offensive game plan. He demands attention on every snap and that is going to free up everyone else around him.”

Prior to letting Saquon Barkley trot down the Turnpike last year, the Giants’ most recent glaring case of personnel mismanagement had been trading back in the 2021 draft when Micah Parsons was available to them. They ultimately got Kadarius Toney, one of the team’s all-time busts. Carter, who followed Parsons at Penn State and has drawn comparisons to Von Miller and other game-altering edge rushers in the league today, could be the Giants’ answer to both NFC East gaffes.

Carter doesn’t see himself lasting until that third pick the Giants currently hold.

“Defensive players impact the game as much as quarterbacks,” he said of the premium on his position. He said he believes the first overall pick should be the top player in the draft, regardless of where they play, “and I know I am the best.”

But if he does come to New York, he believes he can not only coexist with the current players the Giants have, but rise above them.

“My goal is to come in and be ‘The Guy,’ ” he said.

Carter played — and at times dominated — during Penn State’s College Football Playoff run despite having a shoulder injury that might have sidelined others with his future in the NFL. “My teammates needed me,” he said of that decision. He won’t compete in any of the physical events at the Combine this week, but Carter said he has recently been cleared to resume training fully and expects to perform at his pro day in a few weeks and certainly be ready for somebody’s offseason program in the spring.

“I think I bring energy, effort, versatility,” Carter said. “I feel like when the biggest moments come around that’s when I play at my best.”

After being dragged through the mud because of the decisions they have made in recent years, the Giants could definitely use some of that.

By Tom Rock

tom.rock@newsday.com@TomRock_Newsday

Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.