Philadelphia Native, Lifelong Eagles Fan Abdul Carter is “All New York”

When Philadelphia native Abdul Carter heard his name called with the third overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, it was a team he’d spent the first 21 years of his life rooting against making the pick.

Raised in North Philly, Carter grew up an Eagles fan, hated divisional rival of the New York Giants who selected him. Does the 6-foot-3, 259 pound edge rusher who made a name for himself terrorizing opposing quarterbacks have any qualms about trying to bury Eagles’ signal-caller Jalen Hurts — who he cheered for in person en route to a Super Bowl championship just three months previously, even posing with the Lombardi Trophy after the game — in the turf?

Not at all.

“Yeah, I’m all New York,” Carter said in an interview with ESPN soon after the Giants made their pick. “New York getting everything from me. All the passion that I have, all the love that I have, all the excitement.”

Passing the Torch

In a way, landing with the Giants is fitting. Even though Carter grew up an Eagles fan, he considers New York legend Lawrence Taylor — who racked up 25 of his 132.5 sacks against Philadelphia, his most against any opponent — the greatest NFL player of all time. Carter went so far as to ask Taylor permission to don his No. 56 jersey, retired by the Giants barely a year after the conclusion of the Hall of Famer’s playing career.

Taylor politely declined the request, telling Carter to blaze his own trail.

“He has to be the player that he is,” Taylor told ESPN in a phone conversation. “He can’t be another Lawrence Taylor. Well, he may be better than a Lawrence Taylor, who knows. But he has to make his mark. It’s up to him.”

“And I’m hoping that he’s not thinking that, ‘Oh, I got shot down by LT. No, it isn’t like that, man.’ It’s, ‘Hey, I’m with you!’ I mean, I’m the guy that it takes two. I’m going to be two steps behind you and make sure you don’t fall.”