Abdul Carter's Last Pre-Draft Visit Will Be to New England Amid Reports His Stock is Falling

From Abdul Carter's physical tools to his stats to his highlights to the way he produced in Penn State's BCS playoff run where he was playing basically with one arm and was still unblockable, I don't think there's one Patriots fan who wouldn't gladly take him with the fourth pick. In fact, most probably would've taken him with the No. 1 pick if Jerod Mayo hadn't deployed Joe Milton as an anti-tank weapon when we most needed to lose. 

The reason you haven't seen Carter mentioned in any of my draft previews, or really any Patriots articles by anyone else for that matter, has been the overwhelming perception he be off the board by the time they're on the clock. It simply defies logic to think a guy with his skillset would slide past the Top 3. 

But as we enter the batshiat Naked Time that is the final two weeks of this process every year, things go haywire. Opinions change. Guys who haven't played a snap in three months rise and fall on draft boards. And all bets are off. So while a few weeks ago it looked like Tennessee would make Carter the No. 1 pick, they're now a mortal lock to take Cam Ward. Travis Hunter is the odds-on favorite to go to Cleveland at No. 2. And now ... no one knows. Certainly not Carter, who is now making a trip to Foxboro to meet with the Patriots:

This is big because it seemed borderline unthinkable that he could drop to 4. Until now. 

There could be a lot of reasons for this visit. The simplest one being that the Pats are simply doing their due diligence. There are plenty of examples of Bill Belichick sending Josh McDaniels to go workout some quarterback they had zero shot at, a Trevor Lawrence or a Justin Herbert. Either for scouting purposes or shits & gigs. This could be just another example. 

Then again, it could based on an assumption the Giants feel they've got enough edge rushers at the moment, thankyouverymuch. And plan on drafting for some other need. Which sounds insane since that same franchise beat Tom Brady in two Super Bowls precisely because you can never have enough pass rush. 

Or, it could be his foot injury, which doesn't require surgery and reportedly isn't going to cost him any time.

More ominously, it could have something to do with the badmouthery Carter has been receiving from anonymous talent evaluators:

Bob Mcginn, who is respected in the draft community doing this for 41 years, was told this as potential red flags for Top Prospect Abdul Carter.

Also: "He's a Pro Bowl player. He's got everything you're looking for as an edge rusher. But he's not a quality guy." That scout was one of four personnel people to express reservations about Carter's makeup…..He's not a great worker," said one. "Plays his ass off on Saturday but he's not a great guy during the week because he's so gifted. I give him credit. He got hurt in the Boise State (playoff) game and had no business playing against Notre Dame. Played, and played his ass off. He's a modern, high-maintenance, big-time player. There are similarities to Micah Parsons as a player and as a kid. Micah was probably a little more malicious coming out."

But even that report is hardly damning the man with faint praise. If your next employee evaluation claims you're "not a quality" guy while saying you're so talented you're a pain to be around on your days off, then praises you for coming in sick when you should've been home and doing an incredible job, you'd start looking for ways to spend your next raise and bonus check. But sticking strictly to football scouting, we've yet to see a time when comparing a Front-7 defender to Micah Parsons in terms of skill and temperament was meant as a putdown. 

In all this, we're seeing more and more mocks showing Carter landing in the Patriots waiting, loving arms.  CBS News Boston listed 11. Five have the Pats taking Will Campbell at No. 4, five have Carter, and one has Carter still on the board but the Pats trading back to 10 and still ending up with Campbell. 

The five with a Carter-to-New England scenario are:

Chris Trapasso, CBS Sports: The Patriots consider Will Campbell but new head coach Mike Vrabel tips the scales toward Carter. 

Chad Reuter, NFL Network: Mike Vrabel already added pieces to the defensive front in free agency, but he can't pass up one of the elite talents in the class.

Nick Baumgardner, The Athletic:  Carter's foot situation certainly complicates matters, though I wouldn't rule him out as a top-three selection here. If he's healthy, Carter has a chance to be the best pro in the class. Foot injuries are scary, however.

Nate Tice and Charles McDonald, Yahoo Sports:  The Patriots would love to add to their offensive line and weapons this draft, but Carter is too good of a talent to pass up. Along with new additions Milton Williams and Harold Landry III as well as returning players Christian Barmore (hopefully healthy now) and Keion White, Carter would help turn this Patriots front into a formidable one, with a nice collection of different skill sets to work with, too. 

Ian Valentino, The 33rd Team: This is the best case for New England. With the Giants already having two high-end pass-rushers and maybe some concern about Carter's health, the Patriots get the chance to get the highest-rated player on most boards. Carter's upside is that of a perennial Pro Bowler.  

Best case scenario for New England, indeed. One I simply could not picture happening. At least not since Mayo and Milton dropped that dookie in the pool back in Week 18 with a win nobody wanted. If by some miracle they get Carter anyway, then all is forgiven. In fact, we'll owe Mayo and Milton a nice Edible Arrangement for saving us some money under the cap while still not costing us the best player in the Class of 2025. 

Now we find ourselves in the position of hoping the Giants do something to help the Patriots, which historically speaking hasn't ever worked out. Still, we can hope that Monday's visit goes well. That Carter's foot passes all the medical tests. And that scouts keep savaging the player and waving more red flags than Beijing on Chinese New Year. If the Pats land Abdul Carter at No. 4, every other pick will just be playing with the house's money. Make it so.