Giants Now: ESPN praises Abdul Carter, Jaxson Dart

Giants
07 May 2025, 15:30 GMT+10

Matt Citak

ESPN praises Abdul Carter and Jaxson Dart

The Giants were one of just two teams to come out of the first round of this year's draft with two players.

In addition to landing perhaps the best overall player in the class in Abdul Carter with the third pick, the Giants were able to move back into the first round to take Jaxson Dart, a potential franchise quarterback, at No. 25.

Both players recently garnered some praise fromESPN's Matt Miller and Jordan Reid.

When asked about his choice as the "guaranteed future NFL star of the class," Miller selected the All-American linebacker from Penn State.

"Maybe I'm cheating by choosing the top player on my board, but I love his fit in New York thanks to his explosive ability and versatility," wrote Miller. "With defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II and edge Brian Burns also on this defensive line, Carter won't have to deal with many double teams out of the gate."

After transferring from off-ball linebacker to full-time edge rusher this past season, Carter put together a breakout campaign for the Nittany Lions. The 6-foot-3, 250-pound pass rusher picked up 12.0 sacks and a nation-high 23.5 tackles for loss, along with two forced fumbles and four passes defensed, on his way to being named Unanimous All-American and first-team all-conference.

He was also selected as the Nagurski-Woodson Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and the Smith-Brown Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year.

Miller wasn't alone with his analysis, as his ESPN colleague chose Carter as his early call for Defensive Rookie of the Year.

"I'm going to go with Carter here because he steps into a situation where he can have a huge impact," Reid wrote. "Dexter Lawrence II, Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux will command plenty of attention, which will allow Carter to thrive."

As for Dart, Miller selected the rookie signal-caller going to the Giants as his favorite quarterback landing spot.

"Dart needed to go to a team where he could sit and learn from a proven quarterback developer," the NFL analyst said. "Coach Brian Daboll has that track record, and having Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston on the roster will allow Dart the time he needs to learn and grow."

The first-team All-SEC selection enjoyed his best season in 2024, completing 69.3 percent of his passes for 4,279 yards, 29 touchdowns and just six interceptions across 13 games for the Rebels.

He finished his Ole Miss career with 10,617 passing yards in his three seasons as the starter, which topped Eli Manning's previous school record. Dart also added nearly 1,500 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground at Mississippi, while his 28 wins and .737 winning percentage as the starting quarterback set new program high-marks.