Abdul Carter keeps finding new ways to announce himself in the NFL, and Sunday was another loud one.
The former Penn State star was a force in the Giants’ 36-24 win over the Arizona Cardinals, piling up pressure after pressure at MetLife Stadium. Carter finished with only three tackles, but the real damage came when he was hunting the quarterback. He led New York with nine quarterback pressures, and eight of them came in less than 2.5 seconds, according to Next Gen Stats.
He also logged 14 pass-rush wins against Arizona, the most by any player in the NFL in a game through four weeks this season.
That kind of disruption mattered even more for a Giants defense that just lost star edge rusher Brian Burns to an ACL tear last week. New York needed someone to take over the heavy lifting, and Carter delivered.
The 23-year-old, the 2024 All-American and Big Ten DPOY, was selected No. 3 overall in the 2025 draft after helping Penn State reach a CFP semifinal berth. He’s now starting to look like the player the Giants believed they were getting.
Carter’s path to this point hasn’t been spotless. His rookie season had its rough patches, including just one tackle for loss over his first 12 games and two benchings for disciplinary reasons. But he closed that year with at least half a sack in each of the Giants’ four December games.
Now he’s carrying that momentum into his second season, and Sunday was the clearest sign yet that the breakout is real. He dominated.
In Other News...
Penn State Fans Wont Like What An In-State Rival Coach Said
Pat Narduzzi had plenty to say after Pitts close win over Virginia Tech, and much of it was bound to land with Penn State fans as a familiar jab from across the state. The Pitt coach addressed a controversial missed field goal in that game, then turned his attention to the AP Top 25, questioning Penn States placement despite the recent losses that have piled up for the Nittany Lions.
Narduzzi also used the moment to make a case for his own program, pointing to Pitts undefeated start and current ranking as proof his team deserves more respect. It was the latest reminder that the tension between Pitt and Penn State remains very much alive, with Narduzzi continuing a public back-and-forth that has long carried extra weight in a rivalry shaped by him and former Penn State coach James Franklin. [Read more 🡒]
Penn States Early Big Ten Slide Suddenly Looks Like A Bigger Problem
Two weeks into Big Ten play, the leagues shape is already starting to tell a familiar story at the top, with the conference heavyweights still looking the part while some of the preseason contenders are scrambling to catch up. Penn State is in that second group after an uneven start that has made the early standings feel less like a snapshot and more like a warning sign, especially with the Big Tens path to multiple College Football Playoff bids depending on its best teams stacking wins and avoiding the kind of stumbles that can linger all fall.
The Nittany Lions are not alone in that bind, but their position carries extra weight because expectations were so high before league play began. Washington is facing its own early trouble, and several coaching situations around the conference are already under a sharper spotlight, yet Penn States slide stands out because it changes the margin for error so quickly. If the league is going to earn the depth it needs at the top, the teams that were supposed to anchor it cannot keep giving ground this early. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Just Lost The Spotlight For A Huge Michigan Trip
Penn States trip to Michigan on October 17 no longer has the feel of a late-night showcase. The Big Ten announced the game at Michigan Stadium will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET, pulling it out of the prime-time window many had anticipated and shifting some of the national spotlight away from what had shaped up as one of the leagues more intriguing midseason matchups.
It still carries plenty of weight in the Big Ten race, though. Both teams are 0-2 in conference play, which is the first time that has happened to Penn State since it joined the league in 1993, and that makes the meeting even more important for two programs trying to steady themselves. Before that trip, Penn State gets its own marquee stage Saturday night, hosting No. 19 USC in a White Out game at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCs Big Ten Saturday Night. [Read more 🡒]