Throughout much of the months leading to the 2025 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots were connected to two of the most highly-touted players of the incoming class: left tackle Will Campbell and pass rusher Abdul Carter. They needed upgrades at both positions, so fans quickly took an interest in both players.
But the excitement of a game-wrecking pass rusher led many to desire Carter to be the team's No. 4 overall pick, if he were to somehow fall into their lap.
As things unfolded, however, that's not what happened: the New York Giants used their pick to get the Penn State alum and seemingly created a dominant DT duo with Kayvon Thibodeaux already on the roster. It immediately raised expectations for the mediocre franchise, only for Carter to make little impact through 11 games so far, and now to be making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
At this point, it looks like the Patriots were lucky to have chosen Campbell.
Abdul Carter has not become the player many analysts thought he would be in the NFL this year
Although there were some concerns regarding Carter's transition from college football to the NFL, there was also a lot of excitement regarding what he could ultimately become in the league, with most believing he would make an immediate impact in all the right ways during his rookie season.
We haven't seen that just yet, as he has recorded only 23 combined tackles (one for a loss), nine QB hits, and 0.5 sacks through 11 games. It's not exactly what the Giants were hoping for, and certainly not what analysts projected his first season to look like.
Making matters worse, the rookie was benched for the Giants' opening drive in Week 11 as a form of discipline for apparently missing a team meeting leading up to the game. According to The Athletic's Dan Duggan, Carter fell asleep at the team facility and missed the meeting, leading to his temporary benching on Sunday.
It's a headache the Patriots are fortunate not to have to deal with, especially with the culture Mike Vrabel is trying to create. While Carter might eventually become the superstar player many projected him to be, the early disappointment from his performance and behind-the-scenes issues like this would create a lot of drama the Patriots don't need right now, or in the future.
Instead, they have what appears to be a franchise left tackle in Will Campbell so far, and that might arguably be much more needed than a pass rusher project at this point.