Matt Citak: Similar to the rest of his rookie campaign, Abdul Carter produced mixed results in Monday’s loss to the Patriots. For the second time in the last three games, the No. 3 overall pick was not on the field with the rest of the starting defense to begin the game. During the Week 11 matchup against the Packers, Carter was on the sideline for the first defensive series. Against the Patriots, the rookie sat out the entire first quarter due to what interim head coach Mike Kafka called a “coach’s decision, my decision.” Nonetheless, you want your best players out there as much as possible, and especially with Kayvon Thibodeaux hurt, the defense took a hit with Carter not out there in the first quarter.
“I’m learning a lot in terms of just being a man, being in the NFL, just going through it,” Carter told the media Tuesday. “I’m learning a lot and I’m glad I’m going through it so I can be better prepared in the future.”
That was the bad, now let’s discuss some of the good. For starters, Carter picked up the first full sack of his career on Monday night. He now has 1.5 sacks heading into the Week 14 bye, with his first half-sack coming all the way back in the season opener. But Carter’s impact when beyond the sack, as he produced six total pressures, according to Pro Football Focus. This was his second-highest pressure total of the season and gave him nine pressures across the last two games. Over the last three weeks, the rookie outside linebacker has produced five quarterback hits. This came after a six-week stretch in which he was held without a single quarterback hit. While the sack numbers may not be there, the rookie is still finding a way to get after the quarterback and make an impact in the pass rush. Carter ranks ninth among all edge rushers in pass rush win rate at 18 percent, according to ESPN Analytics.
The final month of the season is going to be big for Carter. He responded well to Monday’s first quarter benching by producing one of his strongest games of the season in the final three quarters in Foxborough. But as a rookie, Carter needs as many game reps as possible in order to help him heading into next year, and that isn’t going to happen if disciplinary matters keep popping up. Having turned 22 years old just two months ago, Carter is the youngest player on the roster. As talented as he is, he is going to have to show some growth and maturation over the final month of the season, both on and off the field.
“I would say just what I do on the field after I’ve been through all this adversity, all the controversy,” Carter added. “How do I respond? Do I shy away from it or do I accept the challenge and become better and improve, keep improving and be the man I’m supposed to be?”