It’s only fitting that last year’s Defensive Rookie of the Year set the literal example for this year’s favorite. New York Giants fans can only hope Abdul Carter was paying close attention to the Cowboys-Rams joint practice on Tuesday, because the message from Jared Verse was loud, clear, and absolutely ruthless.
The Dallas Cowboys couldn’t block Verse to save their lives. At all. And it wasn’t just a couple of splash plays here and there. It felt like he had a permanent address in the backfield. It was a complete nightmare scenario for Dallas — absolute dream for Giants fans — and exactly the kind of havoc Carter should be aiming to replicate when these two teams actually meet.
Related: Abdul Carter is single-handedly tearing up Giants camp one rep at a time
The fact that Dallas is still scrambling to figure out its offensive line only adds to the opportunity here. If Verse showed how to blow it all up, Carter, and really the entire Big Blue pass rush, should be walking into September with the blueprint already in hand.
Jared Verse just laid the groundwork for Abdul Carter against the Cowboys
Verse showed up on tape and then backed it up by tearing through the Cowboys like a one-man wrecking crew. He bullied backup tackles like Nate Thomas, shot through gaps to blow up run plays, and made it crystal clear why he took home DROY last season. Every snap was another reminder that Dallas isn’t exactly ready for speed and violence off the edge.
Verse got started playing off the edge, standing up — something Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen will do with Carter. In a somewhat effortless speed-to-ghost move, the 24-year-old blew by Thomas to get to Dak Prescott in around two seconds:
Not a great rep here for the #Cowboys offense. Jared Verse with the sack, Nick Hampton with the interception pic.twitter.com/zUePRjstoH
— Tommy Yarrish (@tommy_yarrish) August 5, 2025
Verse's talents didn't stop at the pass rush. He also impressed in the run game, consistently blowing up plays in the backfield. No play was more impressive than the rep below, where the reigning DROY utilized his burst to blow by a Thomas miscommunication inside to catch Javonte Williams in the backfield, tackling him for an easy loss.
Nowhere to go here for Javonte Williams. Jared Verse is a beast pic.twitter.com/BtxRS0mkFO
— Tommy Yarrish (@tommy_yarrish) August 5, 2025
It was only a scrimmage, but Verse's early signs of dominance make it really easy to believe Carter will have the same success against this suspect offensive line and anemic ground game. Their line has some raw talent, but it’s unsettled, it’s inexperienced, and it just got lit up in a controlled environment.
It’s still August, but the film doesn’t lie. Verse just exposed some serious weaknesses. Carter’s got the skillset to do the exact same thing, with maybe even more juice off the edge.
The G-Men get Dallas in Week 2, and thanks to Verse, Carter already has the “annihilate the Cowboys offensive line” blueprint in front of him. Now it’s up to the rookie to take advantage.