Abdul Carter isn’t the only Penn State player who will benefit from his move to edge rusher

After two years at inside linebacker, James Franklin and new defensive coordinator Tom Allen have moved junior Abdul Carter to edge rusher for what is likely his final season before an NFL career. Though Franklin made it clear it may not be full-time, the move, something Micah Parsons would’ve benefited from, will boost Carter’s production and draft stock, but he’s not the only player on Penn State’s defense who should be excited about the offseason change. 

Dani Dennis-Sutton was one of three five-star recruits that Franklin landed in the 2022 recruiting class, yet despite his monstrous 6-foot-5 272-pound frame, Dennis-Sutton has flown under the radar, at least relative to Drew Allar and Nick Singleton, his 2022 five-star contemporaries. Mixing in a rotation with Chop Robinson and Adisa Isaac last season, Dennis-Sutton posted 3.5 sacks and two forced fumbles while racking up 30 total pressures, the second most on the team, more than Carter and Robinson. 

With Robinson’s midseason injury, Dennis-Sutton played the most pass-rush snaps of any player on the team at 232 and still managed a pass-rush win rate of 15.9%. Among the 501 defensive players who registered at least 200 pass-rushing snaps, that win rate was 43rd, and his win rate on true pass sets of 13.5% is 45th.

For comparison on his own defense, Carter set the high-water mark with a 24.7% win rate on his 112 pass-rush snaps while Robinson was at 20.9% and Isaac was at 13.0%. Carter’s staggering efficiency in limited opportunities was the impetus for his position change, but Franklin had an interesting comment at Big Ten Media Days when he appeared to walk back the decision. 

Franklin told the assembled reporters, “Each week will decide where (Carter)’s going to have an impact for us.” Which leaves the door open to significant reps at inside linebacker, especially if sophomore Tony Rojas is unable to make a smooth transition into a starting role during fall camp and into the season. 

Moving Carter around will maximize the value of his versatility and make identifying No. 11, the No. 1 priority for the opposing quarterback and his offensive line at the line of scrimmage. That’s ideal for Dennis-Sutton, the true primary edge rusher for Penn State’s defense, because once against despite his elite recruiting profile, formidable size, and impressive production, the junior from Owings Mills, Maryland, is still flying under the radar. 

With Carter commanding attention, and more importantly, double-teams, Dennis-Sutton will be free to dominate one-on-one. So, his move to edge rusher could mean that Penn State has not one, but two first-round defensive ends on its roster and one of the most dominant defensive lines in the country.

Last season, under Manny Diaz, Penn State led the country in sacks per game at 3.8. It was the second straight season that the Nittany Lions were in the top 10 after finishing 81st in the final year under Brent Pry before he took over as the head coach at Virginia Tech. Now, it's Allen's turn to prove he can coordinate an elite pass rush with high-level talent after his Indiana teams finished outside the top 100 in sacks per game in each of the last three years. With talents like Carter and Dennis-Sutton at his disposal, it'll be hard not to get elite production upfront.