Getting Abdul Carter onto the field more often has to be the priority for the New York Giants in Week 2, and a major injury blow could inadvertently help the third-overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft earn more reps, provided Carter wants to return to an old position.
The suggestion comes from the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy, who responded to inside linebacker Micah McFadden being ruled out for a lengthy period of time. Dunleavy speculated “if the versatile Abdul Carter ends up playing some inside linebacker (like he did for 2 seasons at Penn State) now that Micah McFadden is out. That’s a way for Carter, Thibodeaux and Burns to play together.”
McFadden’s absence, set to be for “a significant part of the season” thanks to the foot injury he sustained against the Washington Commanders in Week 1, according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport, creates a void, but the Giants don’t need Carter to fill it.
Shifting Carter back to the heart of the linebacker corps might solve the problem of how the Giants rotate their marquee pass-rushers. Yet, a change of role might also limit Carter’s opportunities to put heat on the pocket.
The Giants need their loaded front seven to dominate against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium on Sunday, September 14. More so than the unit did against another NFC East opponent last week.
Giants Need Bigger Abdul Carter Plan
Dunleavy’s plan for Carter has already played out in real time. When the rookie blitzed over center from a standup alignment to generate this quick pressure highlighted by Nick Falato of SB Nation’s Big Blue View.
The clip shows the Giants with five front-line rushers on the field. It’s the formula for getting more from a star-studded front, but Carter is the main attraction, the player the Giants need taking over games.
He didn’t hit those heights during his regular-season debut, but the 21-year-old still did enough to show there’s more to come. Enough like drawing “two holding penalties and a third, a false start on running back Austin Ekeler,” per NorthJersey.com’s Art Stapleton.
Carter’s first outing was all about his flair for disruption. Something that even extended to special teams duty.
Football’s third phase provided Carter with the platform for his biggest play to date as a pro. This blocked punt where his speed downhill proved too much for Commanders tight end Ben Sinnott.
A level of explosion like this is rare, so the Giants can’t keep Carter sidelined as often as they did last week.
Abdul Carter Must Get More Work
Head coach Brian Daboll and defensive coordinator Shane Bowen were content to let Carter operate in a reduced role. It meant Carter played a mere 38 snaps on defense, per Pro Football Reference.
That’s not enough, even when the Giants have fellow skilled edge-rushers available like Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux. Daboll attempted to explain to Stapleton how “the snap distribution is a conscious effort to make sure the players are fresh this early in the season.”
Although Stapleton asked if the Giants “were cautious in putting too much on Abdul’s plate in his NFL debut and Daboll said no, that wasn’t it.”
Daboll and his staff don’t need to overcomplicate things with Carter. They simply need to get a preternatural athlete onto the field and into attack mode.
The best way to do that is to unleash him off the edge and from closer to the line of scrimmage. Having Carter replace McFadden alongside Bobby Okereke wouldn’t be an efficient use of a key asset’s core talents.
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