2025 NFL Draft

2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Clemson LB Barrett Carter

Barrett Carter

From now until the 2025 NFL Draft, we will scout and create profiles for as many prospects as possible, examining their strengths, weaknesses, and what they can bring to an NFL franchise. These players could be potential top-10 picks, down to Day 3 selections and priority undrafted free agents. Today, a scouting report on Clemson linebacker Barrett Carter.

NO. 0 BARRETT CARTER, LB, CLEMSON (SENIOR) – 6001 231 POUNDS

MEASUREMENTS

Player Ht/Wt Hand Size Arm Length Wingspan
Barrett Carter 6001/231 9 1/4 32 1/8 78 5/8
40-Yard Dash 10-Yard Dash Short Shuttle 3-Cone
N/A N/A 4.41 N/A
Broad Jump Vertical Bench Press
9’8” 34.5 N/A

THE GOOD

— Possesses good bulk for his size
— Displays good play speed and explosiveness
— Leaping ability aids in batting down passes
— Shows great closing speed in pursuit of the football
— Effective blitzer from the box or coming off the edge
— Makes a lot of plays in the backfield for the defense
— Effective QB spy with the range and speed to keep him contained
— Does a good job going through his reads and diagnosing the play
— Plays with shoulders square to the line of scrimmage
— Will stack and shed blockers as he approaches the line of scrimmage
— Does a good job completing his zone drops into coverage

THE BAD

— A tad undersized for the position
— Can get engulfed by sheer size and strength of offensive linemen
— Lateral quickness could be better
— Can over-pursue the ball carrier and not break down coming into his tackles
— Can do a better job running through his tackle attempts rather than leaving his feet

BIO

— Senior prospect from Suwanee, GA
— Born Oct. 23, 2002 (Age 22)
— Sports communication major
— Aspires to open a training center for young athletes
— Proud sponsor athlete of Handel’s Ice Cream
— Five-star recruit according to Rivals
— All-American Bowl invitee
— Played in 12 games in 2021 (one start) and had 26 tackles, one tackle for loss, a pass breakup, and a fumble recovery for a touchdown
— Started 13 games in 2022 and had 77 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, eight pass breakups, two interceptions, and two forced fumbles
— Started 12 games in 2023 and had 67 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, six pass breakups, an interception, and a fumble recovery
— Started 14 games in 2024 and had 84 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, nine pass breakups, and a fumble recovery
— Third-team All-American (2024), team captain (2024), First-Team All-ACC (2024), Second-Team All-ACC (2023), three-time ACC Honor Roll selection (2021-23), three-time All-ACC Academic Team honoree (2022-24)

TAPE BREAKDOWN

Clemson LB Barrett Carter was destined for the league since his days in high school, starring at North Gwinnett High School as a five-star recruit. Carter went on to play for the Tigers, and during his four years at Death Valley, he played in 52 games with 40 starts. He logged 254 tackles (31.5 for loss), 12.5 sacks, 24 pass breakups, three interceptions, two forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries in 2,482 career defensive snaps.

When you turn on Carter’s tape, you see a fast and athletic defender who flies to the football. He has great open-field speed and explosiveness, paired with the tenacity in pursuit to run down his prey sideline-to-sideline. Watch the clips of Carter below, flowing to the football with relative ease. He’s playing spy to the QB in the first clip as he brings him down, while running down a screen pass in the second clip against Stanford.

Carter is an aggressive defender who takes on blocks, both coming downhill and on the edge. He stacks and sheds with active hands to get in on tackle attempts. Watch the following clips below against Stanford and Georgia to see Carter get off blocks against both offensive linemen and running backs to make a play on the ball carrier for minimal-to-no gain on the play.

He can split out into the nickel as a coverage defender, but he will also work through blocks like you see here on this screen pass to the wide receiver. He forces the incompletion as he fights through the block attempt to break up the pass.

Carter is an effective blitzer at the off-ball linebacker position, having 12.5 sacks over the past three seasons. He does a great job working angles into the pocket and around/through blocks to the passer. We see that in this clip below against Florida State. He gets off the block by the left guard and locates the quarterback as the pocket collapses to get the sack.

Carter isn’t known for his pass defense, but the two-time All-ACC performer displays the skill set to run with backs and tight ends in coverage, make zone drops, and occupy his area with his head on a swivel. He has accumulated 24 pass breakups over the course of his career and has a knack for leaping up into the air and batting down balls. You can see that in the clips below, playing close to the line of scrimmage.

There aren’t many negatives in Carter’s game, but his relative lack of ideal size and length could cause him to get stuck on more blocks than you’d like to see at the next level if not kept clean. He also can tend to overrun plays and not break down properly when arriving to the football, leading to occasional whiffs like you see in the clip below against the Bulldogs. Carter rallies to the check-down pass in the flat.

CONCLUSION

Barrett Carter is a young, athletic defender built to play off-ball linebacker in the league. He has great character and is known for his leadership in the locker room. He can immediately compete for playing time as a three-down linebacker, best built for run-and-chase situations where he can flow freely to the ball while also being used as a rusher in blitz packages.

When coming up with a pro comp for Carter, Bobby Okereke comes to mind as another athletic linebacker with similar size and measurables drafted in the third round out of Stanford who has become a productive starter in the league. I expect Carter to go in a similar range and to develop into a similar player with the proper coaching and similar scheme set. Pittsburgh doesn’t need to draft a linebacker high, but Carter would be a quality addition if the team wants to go that route.

Projection: Day 2
Depot Draft Grade: 8.2 – Future Quality Starter (2nd Round)
Games Watched: vs Georgia (2024), vs Stanford (2024), at Florida State (2024)

Previous 2025 NFL Draft Player Profiles
CB Jahdae Barron DL Derrick Harmon QB Quinn Ewers RB Omarion Hampton
RB RJ Harvey EDGE Kyle Kennard WR Luther Burden III RB Ollie Gordon II
WR Tre Harris DL Shemar Stewart DL Walter Nolen OT Will Campbell
WR Tetairoa McMillan DL Rylie Mills WR Jayden Higgins WR Emeka Egbuka
QB Jalen Milroe WR Matthew Golden RB Ashton Jeanty EDGE Nic Scourton
DE Jared Ivey CB Denzel Burke DT Deone Walker WR Isaiah Bond
RB Bhayshul Tuten DT Tyleik Williams WR Xavier Restrepo DT Kenneth Grant
TE Colston Loveland QB Jaxson Dart CB Zy Alexander LB Jalon Walker
TE Tyler Warren QB Kyle McCord RB Tahj Brooks QB Cam Ward
CB Benjamin Morrison OT Josh Simmons CB Azareye’h Thomas RB Kaleb Johnson
EDGE Landon Jackson CB Shavon Revel Jr. DL Ty Robinson QB Will Howard
DL T.J. Sanders CB Trey Amos EDGE Ashton Gillotte DL Darius Alexander
WR Tez Johnson RB Devin Neal OT Emery Jones WR Tai Felton
CB Darien Porter OT Hollin Pierce CB Maxwell Hairston DL Omarr Norman-Lott
WR Ricky White III OG Tate Ratledge S Jaylen Reed RB Cam Skattebo
WR Kyle Williams DL Vernon Broughton WR Jake Bech EDGE Josaiah Stewart
EDGE Abdul Carter RB TreVeyon Henderson QB Riley Leonard RB Damien Martinez
RB Quinshon Judkins WR Jalen Royals OT Kelvin Banks Jr. DL Joshua Farmer
DB Malachi Moore DL Jordan Burch WR Savion Williams DL Alfred Collins
LB Jay Higgins TE Elijah Arroyo DL Shemar Turner OT Josh Conerly
CB Quincy Riley TE Gunnar Helm DB Sebastian Castro WR/CB Travis Hunter
iOL Jack Conley RB Raheim Sanders CB Will Johnson CB Cobee Bryant
WR Pat Bryant OT Anthony Belton EDGE Mykel Williams TE Harold Fannin Jr.
WR Arian Smith DL JJ Pegues RB Trevor Etienne S Xavier Watts
OT Charles Grant DL Nazir Stackhouse CB Tommi Hill OL Donovan Jackson
OT Aireontae Ersery S Malaki Starks EDGE James Pearce Jr. TE Jalin Conyers
WR Jaylin Noel DL Mason Graham WR Elic Ayomanor EDGE Elijah Roberts
CB Upton Stout RB Dylan Sampson DL Tim Smith OG Dylan Fairchild
WR Theo Wease Jr. EDGE Mike Green CB Mello Dotson OT Armand Membou
RB LeQuint Allen EDGE Princely Umanmielen OG Tyler Booker RB DJ Giddens
S Craig Woodson LB Jacob Kiser WR Zakhari Franklin S Nick Emmanwori
TE CJ Dippre LB Danny Stutsman CB Jabbar Muhammad TE Mason Taylor
DT Jordan Phillips LB Kobe King DL Cam Horsley DL Cam’Ron Jackson
DL Jamaree Caldwell LB Jihaad Campbell RB Jordan James OL Wyatt Milum
C Jake Majors DE Jack Sawyer DE Donovan Ezeiruaku WR Chimere Dike
DL Howard Cross III OL Marcus Mbow RB Kalel Mullings S Andrew Mukuba
OG Luke Kandra QB Tyler Shough C Grey Zabel OT Cameron Williams
LB Jamon Dumas-Johnson EDGE Tyler Baron OL Jalen Rivers EDGE JT Tuimoloau
OG Jonah Savaiinaea S Shilo Sanders WR Ja’Corey Brooks CB Jacob Parrish
RB Jacory Croskey-Merritt EDGE Jah Joyner S Kevin Winston Jr. EDGE Oluwafemi Oladejo
LB Teddye Buchanan  LB Cody Simon C Jared Wilson OT Ozzy Trapilo
RB Jaydon Blue LB Carson Schewsinger LB Chris Paul Jr. DT Thor Griffith
WR Antwane Wells Jr. LB Jeffrey Bassa CB Alijah Huzzie DT Jared Harrison-Hunte
EDGE Antwaun Powell-Ryland CB Dorian Strong EDGE Fadil Diggs QB Shedeur Sanders
TE Terrance Ferguson LB Carson Bruener WR Jordan Watkins RB Donovan Edwards
DL CJ West CB Jaylin Smith CB Mac McWilliams OG Miles Frazier
S Hunter Wohler EDGE Ahmed Hassanein WR Elijhah Badger TE Jake Briningstool
QB Brady Cook RET Jacquez Stuart S Jonas Sanker WR Jimmy Horn Jr.
CB Jason Marshall Jr. RB Kyle Monangai DT Aeneas Peebles DL Warren Brinson
EDGE Bradyn Swinson S Billy Bowman Jr. QB Dillon Gabriel EDGE Barryn Sorrell
S Malik Verdon WR Dont’e Thornton RB Breshard Smith OT Chase Lundt
TE Jackson Hawes WR Nick Nash S Lanthan Ransom TE Oronde Gadsden II
WR KeAndre Lambert-Smith OL Jonah Monheim OT Jalen Travis CB BJ Adams
WR Will Sheppard OT Ajani Cornelius DT Kyonte Hamilton DB Robert McDaniel
QB Hunter Dekkers OL Jackson Slater RB Lan Larison LB Aaron Smith
OL Thomas Perry OT Carson Vinson CB Melvin Smith OL Marcus Wehr
TE JJ Galbreath RB ShunDerrick Powell OL Aiden Williams RB Marcus Yarns
DE Rovell Carter CB Isas Waxter OL Gareth Warren RB Tre Stewart
S Keondre Jackson WR Efton Chism II EDGE David Walker QB Cam Miller
OL Clay Webb S TaMuarion Wilson QB Taylor Elgersma QB Tommy Mellott
WR Andrew Armstrong WR Dominic Lovett WR LaJohntay Wester EDGE Elijah Ponder
WR Traeshon Holden S Dan Jackson DL Yahya Black LB Que Robinson
RB Phil Mafah LB Demetrius Knight Jr. RB Woody Marks TE Mitchell Evans
TE Luke Lachey CB Justin Walley RB Antario Brown WR Kaden Prather
QB Zach Zebrowski DL Zeek Biggers TE Anthony Torres EDGE Sai’vion Jones
OL Seth McLaughlin RB Ja’Quinden Jackson DB Jordan Clark OT Gerad Christian-Lichtenhan
To Top