Yahoo Sports NFL analyst Nate Tice and NFL writer Charles McDonald look at the strengths and weaknesses of the consensus No. 1 pass rusher ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Video Transcript
Let’s start at the top here.
Abdul Carter, give me some of your strengths.
Why do you think he is the consensus number one?
I think as far as the edge rushers in this draft, I think he’s probably got the cleanest projection as far as being like a potential double digit sack guy in the NFL.
Uh, he’s got the best get off, uh, at least, you know, how to be like a consistent part of his game in the class.
Uh, like, no, don’t really have any concerns about what the athleticism looks like even though we haven’t seen him test.
Uh, I think he’s got, you know, there, there aren’t a lot of guys I think in this class who are really great at maybe setting up their pass rush rules or having a plan, but he’s one of those guys that can come with it every once in a while.
And also, you know, like I said with the athletic, he can just kind of beat you with speed off of the edge too.
The big selling point with him is just athleticism, uh, and how, how he, he can just catch offensive lineman and really, uh, it seems like a lot of players on the field just off guard with how quick he is off the ball and how smoothly he can move.
You know, through the gap, so that’s, that’s the selling point.
Um, I just don’t really think there are any other guys who who move quite like that that are also closer to being able to affect, uh, pass rus day one, so that’s where he gets the uh the nods is probably like the consensus number one pass rusher in this class and some of the blemishes is that, you know, he can be in different.
Against the run, uh, which is a lot of time, a lot of defenders in college can be like that and kind of take himself out of run play, take himself out of run plays, I think, because I just mentioned knifing inside is that he can go rogue sometimes and because he wants to get after the passer.
And so he takes himself out of position, other guy and they can get gashed for an explosive play.
That’s something that you can be taught.
It’s just but that sometimes you need to kind of rein that in.
And especially for a young player, cause you gotta go, and especially in the NFL because NFL teams will take advantage of it even more.
But I, I will say that that was maybe the main thing that I noticed.
I was like, all right, you’re not awesome against the run.
You’re, he’s solid, and he plays hard, it’s just sometimes he goes rogue, and sometimes he can get overwhelmed but maybe some bigger guys because that’s not his strength of his game.
His strength is to get after the passer.
