The preseason has come and gone, and the New York Giants now look toward the regular season starting on September 7 at Washington. With that said, there have been some developments throughout the three meaningless games that paint a clear picture that the 2025 campaign is going to be special.
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There is one special player in particular who is making his NFL debut against the Commanders, who should have a noteworthy rookie season. Abdul Carter has a chance to make history, and it wouldn't shock fans if he were able to accomplish this feat. He is already getting some comparisons to other elite pass rushers without even playing a real-game snap.
Can the Penn State product set a Giants franchise record for rookies in sacks?
Abdul Carter could break Giants' rookie sack record
Currently, Azeez Ojulari is the rookie sack king, with 8.0 recorded in 2021. This is followed by B.J. Hill in 2018 with 5.5 sacks, and then Cornelius Griffin in 2000 with 5.0 sacks. The almighty Lawrence Taylor should have the record, as he had an unofficial 9.5 sacks in his rookie run back in 1981, but sacks were not tracked officially until the following season.
Enter the 2025 season, and Carter is one of the most hyped edge rushers in recent memory. Kayvon Thibadeux had a similar type of hype, and he finished his rookie year with a respectable 4.0 in 2022. But the vibe and aura around Carter are so much different.
This upcoming year has a chance to be a very good one for Big Blue, at least based on what we all saw in preseason. Despite not counting toward anything of any true meaning, the blueprint has been set for Head Coach Brian Daboll and company to get this team back in the green.
The offense has seemingly found a working formula, and more importantly, the defensive side of the ball looks like a nightmare to play against. Though unproven in any kind of regular-season situations, you can say that they have a legitimate chance to be a top-five defense at the end of the year.
And that will come from the huge aid from Carter and his relentless pass rush. There is more than enough evidence from preseason and the head-to-head practices with opposing teams that suggests the 21-year-old is going to hit the ground running this season. That sack record might be broken, and then stand for a long time by how far of a margin it is from Ojulari's eight sacks.
Exciting things are happening in the Meadowlands, and watching No. 51 is one of the top reasons why. This kid is going to be something special, but it is up to him whether his name will be added to the record books in his first 17-game season.