Jalen Carter Kicks Off The Top 5 on Eagles Top-25 Player List

The top five of Philadelphia Eagles On SI’s list of the best 25 players entering the 2026 season kicks off with arguably the most talented player in the organization, but one coming off a down year due to injury and circumstance.

Fourth-year defensive tackle Jalen Carter is focused on a rebound season with his second contract looming. He starts that process ranked No. 5 on the current roster.

The list was compiled by the staff at Eagles on SI. Players were ranked from one through 25, with first place landing one point, second two points, and so on down to 25 points for 25th place. Thirty points were given to a player who appeared in the top 25 but didn’t get a vote from one of the three voting members – Jeff Kerr, John McMullen, and Ed Kracz.

Carter made the top 10 on all three ballots, with the high-water mark being No. 2 by Kerr. Kracz and McMullen were a little less bullish after the down season, with Kracz landing on No. 7 with Carter and McMullen putting him at No. 8.

The 2024 second-team All-Pro is eligible for an extension, and the speculation heading into last season was that the Florida native would reset the market for interior defensive linemen this offseason, but the organization has been slow-playing things to date.

That resulted in a hold-in of sorts at mandatory minicamp, where Carter was in attendance but did not take part in any team drills. There was also the cover of the shoulder issues so it can't be completely ruled out that the Eagles were being cautious with Carter's health.

With the Eagles’ first training camp practice scheduled for July 29, all eyes will be on Carter unless the Eagles work out an extension over the next 10 days.

A Healthier Version

Jalen Carter takes the field on a scorching hot Tuesday morning at Eagles training camp. | Ed Kracz/Eagles on SI

Persistent shoulder pain was the main reason for Carter’s regression in 2024, and he had to be shut down for a month after a poor performance against Chicago in late November.

At the time, Carter could barely lift weights due to the pain, and he subsequently had PRP (Platelet-Rich Plasma) injections in both shoulders, which enabled him to return and finish the season by playing in Week 17 at Buffalo, and the playoff loss to San Francisco.

Carter was hardly 100%, though.

Early indications are that rest and rehab have had positive effects on Carter’s shoulders, and his camp has posted a series of videos of him working out in South Jersey during the offseason while throwing around some heavy weights.

While the Eagles and Carter’s camp, led by agent Drew Rosenhaus, have been unable to work anything out to date, Tennessee’s Jeffery Simmons provided the new benchmark at DT with a three-year, $105.8 million for an average annual value of $35.27M.

Along with the shoulder issues, the Eagles also have some questions with consistency and maturity.

In ESPN’s annual survey of league executives, coaches and scouts, Carter was still ranked No. 3 at DT behind only Seattle’s Leonard Williams and Simmons.

One coordinator highlighted Philadelphia’s concerns, though.

"He flashes 10 times a game but gets dragged far too often by average players," the coordinator told ESPN.

The film wasn’t great either last season, with Pro Football Focus grading out the gifted Carter at No. 80 of the 127 IDL ranked last season. He was especially poor as a run defender (No. 115 of 130). His talented teammates at DT were ranked much higher at DT with Jordan Davis at No. 15 and Moro Ojomo at No. 28.

During his first two seasons, Carter was No. 6 of 130 in 2023 and No. 18 of 118 in 2024.

Obviously, the ESPN list and our own are betting Carter is closer to the player he was during his first two seasons moving forward.

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