Eagles' Jalen Carter a Draft Bust? Proving Doubters Wrong Begins Now
PHILADELPHIA – The Philadelphia Eagles broke tradition and kept another.
For years, they avoided taking players with questionable character, dubious work ethic, and lack of passion for the game. That streak ended on Thursday night in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft when they selected Jalen Carter.
There’s no doubt that Carter is the best defensive tackle in the draft.
There was also no doubt that he comes with a lot of questions, so many in fact that only three teams in the top 10 were comfortable taking him, according to sources.
Those teams were the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions.
Both teams passed, anyway, begging the question why?
The Seahawks selected cornerback Devon Witherspoon, and the Lions, after trading back a spot to No. 7, took defensive end Tyree Wilson.
It’s not likely the Bears were leaning toward taking Carter, otherwise, they wouldn’t have made the trade. The Eagles probably wanted to come up to prevent any other team from beating them to the punch – just in case.
That is the streak that stayed intact - trading up in the first round. This was the third straight year they did that, coming up two spots for DeVonta Smith in 2021 and Jordan Davis last year.
Carter, who is 6-3 and 314 pounds, is a boom-or-bust prospect.
My initial thoughts are more bust than boom.
He showed up to his pro day at Georgia nine pounds overweight.He was so out of shape he wasn’t able to complete the drills he was so out of shape. You could make the argument that he had a lot going on with his legal troubles surrounding his role in a fatal car crash that killed a Georgia teammate and staff member.
A warrant that had been issued for him to return to Georgia to face charges surrounding that case interrupted his stay at the NFL Scouting Combine. He did return to Indianapolis to finish.
He ended up getting community service after pleading no contest.
That pro day, though. There’s just no way he shouldn’t have been ready for that. Not if football is life, like Dani Rojas, a character in Ted Lasso, says frequently.
The Eagles, though, must have been confident enough in not only a body of work that saw him record six sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss in three seasons with the Bulldogs.
There’s also a question as to whether Carter has already reached his ceiling, or if he can get better. Not to mention what he will do once the Eagles pump millions into his bank account.
Will he feel like he has arrived or will he still have the drive to get better?
There are questions you shouldn't have to ask about a first-round pick, and it had always been that way with the Eagles for as far back as anyone can recall.
He already stumbled over one. In the moments after being selected, he was interviewed in Kanas City and asked, what did you learn from being involved in a tragedy?"
His answer: "I don't know."
The Eagles have no questions, apparently.
Certainly having veteran leaders like Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham helped make their decision easier, as did having Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean on the roster as well.
Carter said prior to the draft that he looks up to Davis and is a role model for him.
As for now, Carter has much to show to prove he isn’t a bust.
If he isn't, it's a great pick.
If he doesn't, this pick could blow up in the Eagles' face.
Ed Kracz covers the Philadelphia Eagles for SI's EaglesToday.
Please follow him and our Eagles coverage on Twitter at @kracze.
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