Giants rookie edge rusher taken third overall in 2026, the most-hyped pass-rush prospect since Myles Garrett.
Abdul Carter was the consensus top defensive player in the 2026 draft after a 12-sack Penn State season. The Giants took him third overall to pair with Brian Burns. Year one expectations from the team: 8-10 sacks and a clear path to becoming the franchise's long-term edge cornerstone.
Path to the league
Penn State product who started his college career as an inside linebacker before moving to edge. Won the 2025 Chuck Bednarik Award (best college defender) with 12 sacks, 24 TFLs and 9 forced fumbles.
Career highlights
2026 No. 3 overall pick. 2025 Chuck Bednarik Award (Penn State). 2025 Lombardi Award. First-team All-American. Highest projected sack ceiling of any 2026 draft prospect.
2026 outlook
Starting LEO/SAM hybrid in John Harbaugh's first defense as Giants HC. The Robertson-Harris Achilles tear puts more responsibility on Carter to win one-on-one. Pre-season projection: 8 sacks, 45 tackles, 4 forced fumbles. Defensive Rookie of the Year favorite.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Abdul Carter
- Pro Football Reference: Abdul Carter
Statistics
2025 season and career2025 Season · Defense
17 games played▶Defense · career
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | SACK | INT | FF | FR | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | giants | 17 | 43 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Linebacker
- Group
- defense
- College
- Penn State
- Hometown
- Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Age
- 22
- Status
- active
Latest news about Abdul Carter
All news →John Harbaugh 'very hopeful' Malik Nabers will be back soon as knee rehab picks up
Three weeks after calling the recovery 'not simple,' the Giants coach sounded noticeably more upbeat. Nabers still missed minicamp, but the tone around his knee has shifted.
Abdul Carter limped off Giants minicamp with an ankle injury, an early scare for the No. 2 pick
Carter, the centerpiece of the Giants' defensive rebuild, left practice and did not return. Early indications point to something minor, but any injury to a cornerstone rookie draws a held breath.
Four players who could move before the season: Coleman, Kmet, Richardson, Thibodeaux
A receiver on a rebuilding Bills team, a tight end the Bears drafted a replacement for, a quarterback who requested a trade, and an edge rusher stuck behind two starters. What it would take to move each one.
Giants extend GM Joe Schoen, tying the front office to John Harbaugh's rebuild
Four months after firing Brian Daboll and hiring Harbaugh, ownership locks in continuity at the GM position through 2029.
Giants DT Roy Robertson-Harris tears Achilles in OTAs, expected to miss the 2026 season
The second New York defensive lineman to suffer a season-ending injury this offseason. The Giants are now shorthanded up front as John Harbaugh installs his new scheme.
