Abdul Carter already has the kind of buzz that turns a good young player into a future headliner, and Giants coach John Harbaugh is not hiding how high he thinks the bar can go.
Carter, who finished fifth in the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year voting in 2025, has his sights set on something bigger: NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Harbaugh believes that goal is more than talk. In his view, Carter is backing it up.
“I didn't know him as well because, honestly, in the draft, it wasn't a guy we were really looking at because we weren't going to have a chance to draft him. And so, I didn't know him at all.
Then, I started talking to him and liked him right away and the things he had said that he wanted to do. I would say this, I'd say everything he's spoken of in terms of what he wants to accomplish and his plans to do so, he's following through on,” the Giants head coach said, via Grant Gordon of NFL.com.
The numbers from Carter’s first season help explain why the conversation is already getting louder. He finished with 43 combined tackles, including 25 solo stops, along with seven tackles for loss, 23 quarterback hits and four sacks. He did that while starting just six of the 17 games he played.
Harbaugh also pointed to the way Carter has carried himself this summer.
“I think he's been a real leader and mostly by example, by the way he's playing and the energy he's giving. So, it looks good, you're right. I mean, he's had a really, really great camp so far,” Harbaugh said.
If Carter reaches the top of the defensive awards mountain in his sophomore season at age 23, he would tie JJ Watt as the third-youngest winner of the honor. That is a steep climb, but it’s clear his coach thinks the path is there.
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