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Abdul Carter injury update: Adam Schefter reveals worrisome news on potential top-five pick

Wade-Peeryby:Wade Peery•about 10 hours
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Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The NFL Scouting Combine is this week in Indianapolis. And we got some alarming news on Wednesday evening from Adam Schefter regarding one of the top prospects in the draft. Tests revealed on Wednesday that potential No. 1 overall pick Abdul Carter has a stress reaction in his right foot and the Penn State star will need to decide soon on whether to have surgery.

“There are mixed opinions on whether he needs surgery, and we will figure that out in the near future,” Carter’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus said Wednesday night in Indianapolis, the site of the combine.

One of the options moving forward for him would be to have pre-emptive surgery, have a screw inserted into his right foot, and be expected back in eight weeks, according to Rosenhaus. The second option would be to bypass the surgery, conduct his pro day and prove to NFL teams that he doesn’t need it.

Regardless of the medical issues, Carter has clearly proven himself among the best players in the sport the past few years. During his prolific career with the Penn State Nittany Lions, he dominated in the 42 games he played in. In 2024, he tallied 23.5 tackles for loss in a single season, ranking him third all-time in school history in that stat category. Carter also tied for sixth in sacks (12.0), becoming the first Nittany Lion defender to do so since Carl Nassib racked up 15.5 in 2015.

Of course, Carter also racked up an extensive amount of hardware during the 2024-2025 college football season. He became Penn State’s 15th unanimous consensus All-American, the first player to do so since Saquon Barkley did in 2017. He is also the school’s 45th consensus All-American. Carter was also tabbed as the Nagurski-Woodson Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and the Smith-Brown Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year.

Wrapping up his PSU career, Carter finished with 172 total tackles, 39.5 tackles for loss, 23 sacks, five forced fumbles, 13 pass breakups, one interception, and 14 passes defended.