Jalen Carter: The Eagles’ Draft Day Heist: Jalen Carter’s Breakout Performance Justifies Eagles’ Faith in Him
All season long, defensive tackle Jalen Carter has wreaked havoc from the interior of the Eagles’ defensive line. Possessing a rare blend of exceptional strength and explosiveness, Carter has been a handful for every opponent he’s faced and his dominance has carried over into the postseason.
Entering Sunday’s NFC Championship Game showdown, Carter had registered five quarterback hits, two sacks and a forced fumble this postseason. In the NFC Divisional Playoff against the Rams, Carter (23 years, 290 days) logged a career-high-tying two sacks, becoming the youngest Eagle to produce a multi-sack game in the playoffs.
Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury had high praise for the former first-rounder and cited Carter as a cause of concern for Washington heading into the NFC Championship Game.
“He’s one of the most dominant players in the league, if not the most dominant that I’ve seen,” Kingsbury said. “He can wreck a game by himself. They’re good enough up front to rush four and get pressure, as they’ve shown throughout the year. But that guy’s really come on. I have a ton of respect for the way he plays the game, whether they’re up, down, whatever, he’s playing hard, he’s getting his wins, and he changed that entire defense with his style of play this year.”
Carter also drew praise from esteemed Rams legend and future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald, who noted that Carter’s style of play is similar to his own.
Eagles legend LeSean McCoy revealed on Fox Sports 1 that he spoke to Donald, a friend of McCoy’s and fellow Pitt alum, as the three-time Defensive Player of the Year heaped praise onto Carter.
“I haven’t watched football like that in a long time, Donald told McCoy. “That guy Jalen Carter, bro. My replacement is here.”
For as dominant as Carter has been in Philly, it’s crazy to think that his Eagles career began with a polarizing draft day gamble.
As most may recall, Carter was once projected to be the top overall pick in the NFL Draft. A gifted game-disruptor, Carter flat-out dominated at Georgia and helped the Bulldogs capture two national championships (2021 and 2023) in just three seasons.
Unfortunately, Carter was involved in a fatal Jan. 15 crash in Athens, Georgia, following the Bulldogs’ championship parade. The vehicle Carter was alleged to be racing against crashed, resulting in the death of Georgia teammate Devin Willock and recruiting staffer Chandler LeCroy.
The tragic news virtually erased Carter’s chances of being the top pick and jeopardized his potential NFL career altogether.
Ultimately, though, the Eagles believed that the Georgia standout was worth the risk, and traded up to draft him with the ninth overall selection.
Now, just two years later, Carter is proving the Eagles wise for taking a chance on him. Just as he did at Georgia, Carter has helped pioneer a championship run in Philly and has the Eagles on the cusp of capturing the Lombardi Trophy at Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans.
