Lorenzo Carter a Surprise Participant at Giants OTAs
Given the voluntary nature of the OTAs, to expect 100% attendance at practice was always going to be unrealistic.
In some cases, it was because players had previous commitments that kept them away. In others, some chose to heed the recommendation of the NFLPA to skip the voluntary spring workouts.
Others might have skipped practice because they're still rehabbing from injury.
But one guy who fit that last category, rehabbing from injury, was out there in full sight going through his drills, that being outside linebacker Lorenzo Carter.
Carter, you might remember, saw what was starting to be a promising season last year come to an abrupt halt when he tore his Achilles in Week 6 against the Cowboys.
Achilles injuries are never easy to come back from, but there was Carter, going through his drills with his teammates under an early summer sun on the Quest Diagnostics Training Center grass fields.
"It's awesome seeing a guy come back from an injury like that," said linebacker Blake Martinez of Carter. "It's been really cool.--excited for him. I know he's put in a ton of work this off-season getting ready to go. He's just doing his thing out there."
Carter's first two seasons were a mixed bag, though a strong argument could be made that he wasn't used to his strengths by former defensive coordinator James Bettcher, who played Carter inside far too often.
When Patrick Graham came in, he had Carter playing more of an outside role.
Between that tweak to the former Georgia product's snaps and the player's ability to put together a pass-rushing plan, Carter was finally able to show a lot more promise and potential to add to his 9.5 sacks and 27 QB hits racked up in 35 games.
Carter was just getting started last season as the first homegrown Giants pass rusher to finally find success since Jason Pierre-Paul.
In five games, Carter had 15 tackles, 1.0 sacks, and one pass breakup until his injury left him in a crumpled heap on the AT&T Stadium field.
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Entering his fourth season and final year of his rookie deal, Carter hopes to give the NFL Comeback Player of the Year voters something to think about with his performance.
He's already off to a great start, given how quickly he's been able to return to the field after suffering an injury that some never make it back from.
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