Twice this season, Giants rookie pass rusher Abdul Carter has been benched for the start of games for disciplinary reasons. But while that’s alarming from the third overall pick in the draft, the Giants say they’re seeing Carter respond the right way.
Giants defensive coordinator Charlie Bullen says Carter is working harder than ever to grow as a player.
“His response, quite honestly, has been incredible after both of those moments,” Bullen said, via Jordan Raanan of ESPN. “I mean, he’s taken ownership publicly, in the building with his teammates and coaches. And then, honestly, just in terms of, like, pattern behavior, he’s doing more. He’s watching more film. He’s coming in earlier and staying later. So the response is what I focus on. Everybody makes mistakes. Everybody needs to learn the NFL process, which he’s learning right now. But his response to those moments has been awesome. It’s been pro-like. And that’s all you’re asking a young player to do is just become a pro as they grow in their game. And he has.”
Giants interim head coach Mike Kafka said Carter has responded exactly the way Kafka hoped.
“Abdul, he put together a good week of practice. It showed up in the game,” Kafka said. “I was happy for -- anytime a young player can step up and kind of start turning the page and improving. But now the challenge, just like it is for everybody, is can you do that again? You have a good game, can you stack another day? Can you stack another week? Can you stack another game?”
Despite his shaky start, the Giants hope Carter can stack up a lot of good games, for many years to come.
