Penn State’s Abdul Carter hints at his preferred destination in the NFL Draft

The 2025 NFL Draft is here. The 17 players who accepted green room invites to the draft have converged in Green Bay, including former Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter. While the top of the draft appears to be clear-cut, there’s always the chance of a draft-night surprise, especially at the top. 

The Tennessee Titans appear to be locked in on Miami quarterback Cam Ward with the No. 1 overall selection, and behind them, the Cleveland Browns are expected to draft Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter. Despite both the Browns at No. 2 and the Giants at No. 3 needing quarterbacks, it’d be a big surprise if Carter wasn’t the next player to come off the board to New York. 

On Wednesday, Carter all but confirmed that speculation with his pre-draft comments. 

Abdul Carter has a good feeling about the New York Giants

If Carter does go No. 3 overall to the Giants, he won’t be the first former Penn State star to join the organization as a top pick. As mentioned in the video, Saquon Barkley went No. 2 overall to the Giants in the 2018 NFL Draft. However, Carter will hope to be in a better situation on the New York defense than Barkley was on the other side of the ball. 

While he won Offensive Rookie of the Year in his first season, Barkley struggled with inconsistent production and injury throughout his six years playing in the Meadowlands. Most of his down years were due to poor offensive line and quarterback play, as further evidenced by his 2,000-yard season in Philadelphia, as he helped lead the Eagles to the Super Bowl. 

Defensive ends aren’t quite as reliant on their surroundings as running backs, but Carter should still be stepping into a more advantageous situation. The Giants have already invested in the defensive line, drafting Kayvon Thibodeaux No. 5 overall in the 2022 NFL Draft, and trading a 2024 second-rounder and a 2025 fifth-round pick to the Carolina Panthers to add Brian Burns last offseason. 

The addition of Carter could put Thibodeaux on the trading block, but with Burns on the other side and Dexter Lawrence occupying offensive linemen on the interior, Carter won’t see many double-teams to slow him down in Year 1. Cleveland may be the better landing spot with former Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett already entrenched at defensive end, but New York is a reasonable consolation for the former Nittany Lion. 

Carter’s landing spot could be dependent on draft night trades or an unexpected change of heart from New York general manager Joe Schoen, but with the player’s expectations matching the rumors that have been swirling, it feels likely that Carter will be the newest New York Giants on Thursday night.