The New York Giants opened their game against the Green Bay Packers without rookie linebacker Abdul Carter on the field, after the team pulled him from the opening defensive series for missing a scheduled walk-through earlier in the week.
Team officials said Carter was inside the building at the time but wasn’t present for the session because he had fallen asleep, according to The Athletic (via The New York Times). The rookie rejected that characterization on X, where he wrote, “Was not sleep, actually doing recovery… Nonetheless that’s on ME!”
After the game, Carter took full ownership of the situation. “I made a mistake during the week that was detrimental to the team,” he said, per the Times. “That was the consequence.”
However, he then followed up on that statement with a post on X, formerly Twitter, claiming that some media outlets were spreading disinformation. "When the hate don't work, they start telling lies!" he wrote.
The decision to bench him came during Mike Kafka’s first week as interim head coach. According to a source familiar with the team’s internal operations, Carter has had multiple late arrivals to meetings this season.
However, former head coach Brian Daboll reportedly didn’t enforce strict consequences for those slip-ups. Kafka, stepping into the role mid-season, opted to reset the tone with the rookie by taking him off the field for the first drive.
The timing made his absence even more noticeable. Kayvon Thibodeaux was ruled out with a shoulder injury, leaving the Giants without their usual starter off the edge. Carter didn’t see the field until the punt return unit took over following the defense’s initial stop on Green Bay’s six-play opening possession.
Once inserted, he stayed on the field for the remainder of the game. His final stat line was minimal — one tackle, one quarterback hit, and two pressures — but coaches have repeatedly pointed to his ability to generate disruption even when the numbers don’t pop.
Through 11 games, he has been credited with 35 pressures, tying him for 26th in the NFL, though penalties have wiped out 2.5 sacks from his rookie résumé.
The Giants ultimately lost the matchup 27–20. Still, Carter’s brief benching quickly became a focal point for reporters afterward, especially given the team’s thin depth on the defensive front and Kafka’s decision to handle discipline differently than his predecessor.