Abdul Carter didn’t work out at the Penn State pro day Friday, but that didn’t stop the Browns from getting to know him better.

A contingent of Browns decision-makers had dinner with Carter on Thursday night in Pennsylvania, a league source confirmed to The Chronicle-Telegram. Owners Jimmy Haslam and JW Johnson and general manager Andrew Berry were among those on hand for the Browns, who are considering taking Carter with the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft on April 24.

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Carter is considered by many analysts the best player in the draft. He didn’t work out Friday as he recovers from a shoulder injury sustained during the College Football Playoff, agent Drew Rosenhaus told ESPN.

Carter played through the injury and said at the scouting combine last month he had just been cleared to work out and was hoping to be ready for the pro day. He also had a stress reaction in his foot discovered at the combine and doctors recommended letting it heal without surgery.

Carter (6-foot-3, 250 pounds) is viewed as the draft’s top pass rusher. He had 12 sacks and an FBS-leading 24 tackles for loss in 16 games in 2024, adding four passes defensed. He had 11 sacks and 17 tackles for loss in his previous two seasons with the Nittany Lions.

“Very impressive young man from Philadelphia,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski, who’s also a Philly guy, said at the combine. “I know a lot of people that know him from his high school days. Impressive on the grass.”

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The Browns have been busy as they do their final research and evaluations before the draft.

They held a private workout with Miami quarterback Cam Ward on Wednesday, with the traveling party including Haslam, Berry and Stefanski. They also worked out quarterbacks Jaxson Dart of Mississippi and Jalen Milroe of Alabama.

Ward is expected to go No. 1 to the Titans, but the Browns could try to trade up for him. If they stay at No. 2 and the Titans pick Ward, Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders, Carter and Colorado receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter are the most likely options. The Browns could also trade down to add more picks.

Colorado’s pro day is next Friday, and the Browns are expected to meet privately with Sanders and Hunter.

Carter began his career with the Nittany Lions as an outside linebacker before asking to move to end for the 2024 season. He excelled in that role.

“Unleashed is the word I use,” ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said on a recent Zoom call. “When they turned him loose this year, he went from six tackles for loss to 24, he went from 4½ sacks to 12.

“You saw Abdul Carter do it this year after he had played off the ball — and he was a helluva player — but this year he was making those big plays and getting into the backfield. They were turning him loose at 6-3, 250 with incredible bend and incredible explosiveness. And he plays as hard as anybody. There’s nobody who’s going to play harder and give you more effort on the field.”

Carter seems a little light for end — Myles Garrett is 272 pounds — but Berry disagreed.

“He’s not too light,” he said at the combine. “He’s tough, physical, a rare athlete with outstanding speed. He’s special in his own regard that he can play off the ball, he can rush the passer. So he’s an excellent prospect.”

Carter said he would get a bit heavier if asked by a team but isn’t worried about size.

“I ain’t never been too small for nothing my whole life,” he said. “It’s all about heart for me. It’s all about will for me, and I got more of that than anybody.”

Garrett, a four-time first-team All-Pro, recently signed a four-year, $160 million contract extension that includes $123 million guaranteed. The Browns desperately need a long-term answer at quarterback but could go with Carter at No. 2 for a fearsome edge-rushing duo then address quarterback in the second or third round.

“That’d be dope,” Carter said. “Myles is one of the guys I study, one of the guys I watch. Just his game, the way he can impact the game as a pass rusher and as a defender overall, on special teams jumping over the pile, blocking the kick. He’s one of the guys I studied, try to emulate my game after.”