Penn State has always been known to produce great players that produce in the NFL, especially on the defensive side. NaVorro Bowman, Paul Posluszny, Micah Parsons and Jack Ham are a few on the long list of great Nittany Lions that produced in the NFL. T
hat list is about to grow with the next great defensive prospect for the Nittany Lions, Abdul Carter.
Abdul Carter was a 4 star EDGE prospect coming out in 2022. He had a great freshman year with 6.5 sacks and 36 solo tackles. This year so far, he has 14 tackles, 3 sacks and one forced fumble.
INFORMATION
Name: Abdul Carter
Jersey: 11
Position: EDGE
Class: Junior
School: Penn State
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 259 lbs
Abdul Carter’s Strengths
One of Abdul Carter’s strengths is his versatility. He made the move from linebacker to defensive end, and defensive coordinators have lined up all over the field.
He is an elite athlete, as he ended up on Bruce Feldman’s freaks list with running a 4.48 40 yard dash, a 4.35 shuttle and broad jumping 10-7. He has an quick get-off and can accelerate quickly when chasing down a quarterback. He shows potential with using pass rush moves to beat his opponent, and not solely relying on his speed and athleticism.
Abdul Carter’s Weaknesses
While he is an elite athlete, he is still learning the nuisances of the position as he recently transitioned over to edge rusher. He is still learning how to use his hands and not just relying on speed and athleticism to sack the quarterback.
DRAFT PROJECTION
I believe Abdul Carter is going to be a first round pick. Teams are going to love his workout numbers, and love the effort that he puts on tape.
He is still a work in progress as he was just moved to edge rusher, so I think teams will draft him and work on him to be a pass rush specialist first. Teams that are going to look to the draft for edge rusher help will definitely be interested in Carter.
I see teams like the Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers, and the Philadelphia Eagles that can draft Abdul Carter.
