Abdul Carter’s “stress reaction” stirs rumors of declining draft position

Abdul Carter is widely considered to be the top prospect heading into the 2025 NFL draft, however, he could fall down the board. The Penn State Nittany Lions' star pass rusher was rumored to be in the running to be the first overall pick, however, Carter has been rehabbing an injury.

NFL insider John Frascella reports the injury could be more serious than thought, which would impact his draft stock. He took to X on Thursday to report:

"BREAKING: Abdul Carter’s stress reaction in his right foot 'could cause him to drop out of the first four picks' in the NFL Draft, per source. I’m told there is a scenario where Cam Ward, Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter and Tetairoa McMillan are the first 4 picks in the Draft."

If the injury is indeed more serious than originally thought, Frascella doesn't think Carter will be a top-four pick. If Carter falls past fourth overall, it will be interesting to see just how far he will slide down the draft board and to where. Carter recorded 68 tackles, 12 sacks, four pass defense, and two forced fumbles last season with the Nittany Lions.

Abdul Carter won't have surgery on foot

Penn State Nittany Lions star pass rusher Abdul Carter won't have surgery on his foot and instead will rest ahead of the 2025 NFL season.

“I couldn’t be more confident that this will be a non-factor where he’s drafted,” Carter’s agent Drew Rosenhaus said today. “He will put on a show at his pro day.”

However, NFL insider Daniel Jeremiah says he spoke to some teams who aren't concerned by the injury and Carter not having surgery. Jeremiah shared his thoughts on "The Rich Eisen Show" earlier this month:

“I didn’t talk to teams that were too overly concerned there. There were the two options – you can kind of rest it and then still go through the process in the spring, or you could have the surgery. I enquired, ‘Hey, if he has the surgery, now it’s obviously a longer recovery. Is that a major issue?’

"It sounds like that’s a little more commonplace than maybe I thought. I didn’t gather there was a ton of concern there with him," Jeremiah added. "But he goes to his Pro Day, we’ll see. what that looks like. If he comes out of that looking good and feeling good, he’s not gonna move on my list.”

Abdul Carter is the second-ranked player in the NFL draft according to analyst Mel Kiper Jr. of ESPN. The 2025 NFL draft is set for April 24-26 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.