Dawg-Gone Good: Eagles' Defense Adds Georgia's Carter, Smith
Analysis 4/28/23
Howie Roseman is off to a good start in pursuit of yet another NFL Executive of the Year award.
The Philadelphia Eagles general manager, who has won the award twice in the past six years, including last year when the Eagles made it to the Super Bowl, stole the show Thursday on Day 1 of the 2023 NFL Draft, which is saying something when you consider that the Houston Texans had two of the draft’s first three picks.
The Eagles, who also had two first-round picks thanks to a trade last year with the New Orleans Saints, added a pair of important pieces to their defensive line, selecting Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter with the ninth pick and Carter’s Georgia teammate, edge rusher Nolan Smith, at 30.
Both fell to the Eagles in the first round for very different reasons; Smith because of his size – he weighs just 235 pounds – and Carter because of off-the-field issues.
The 6-foot-3, 314-pound Carter is the top-rated interior defensive lineman in this draft. Many analysts felt he was one of two or three best players at any position in the draft.
But in January, he was involved in a fatal car accident that killed one of his University of Georgia teammates and a member of the school’s football staff. Last month, he pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and racing for his involvement in the crash. He was sentenced to a year’s probation, a fine and community service.
Then, Carter showed up at Georgia’s Pro Day last month nine pounds heavier than he was at the scouting combine in Indianapolis two weeks earlier, and he was unable to finish his workout and position drills due to cramps and heavy breathing.
Many teams either downgraded Carter or took him off their board completely. But after bringing Carter to Philadelphia for a pre-draft visit and having their longtime chief security officer Dom DiSandro do a thorough vetting of the player, they decided that if he fell to them they would take him.
“I’ve talked about Dom and the work that he does many, many times,’’ Roseman said Thursday after the conclusion of the first round. “He’s the best in the National Football League at what he does.
“We understand that all of these players need to be developed. They’re coming into the league at a young age and aren’t a finished product. You just want to get to know a person and find out what is in his heart.
“When we got to know Jalen, we felt like here’s a kid who loves football. He’s obviously a winner. He won in college. We have good people in this building. We have a good support staff. We have good players who are good people and really good coaches. We felt it was a good fit for us.’’
The Eagles' defensive line was one of the keys to their Super Bowl run last season. They had a league-high 69 quarterback sacks, which was the third most since the league started counting sacks in 1982.
But they lost a critical part of that pass rush in free agency when defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, who had 11 sacks, signed with the San Francisco 49ers. In addition, two other key parts of their line, six-time Pro Bowl tackle Fletcher Cox and defensive end Brandon Graham, are 32 and 35 respectively.
Carter has exceptional play strength and body control to slip gaps. Over the past two years, in a system that relies on its linemen to primarily occupy blockers so that the linebackers can make plays, he’s recorded 15½ tackles for losses and six sacks.
The Eagles actually traded up from No. 10 to 9 with the Chicago Bears after the Atlanta Falcons passed on Carter at No. 8. They drafted Texas running back Bijan Robinson.Â
“For us, we wanted to get the player,’’ Roseman said. “We wanted to make sure we got him. We had no idea whether the Bears were thinking of taking him or not. We just wanted the player. We wanted to come out with an impact player and we feel Jalen can be an impact player.’’
Few will dispute his impact potential. And if anybody can keep Carter focused and motivated, it’s the Eagles.
They’ve never been afraid to take players with baggage. This is the same organization that gave Michael Vick a second chance in 2009 after he spent nearly two years in federal prison for running a dogfighting ring. Vick ended up playing five years for the Eagles and starting 42 games. But, more importantly, he turned his life around.
“We understand there was a reason why he was available at 9,’’ Roseman said. “Everyone will tell you this is one of the most talented players in the draft. This is one of the most talented players to come out of college football in a long time.Â
“It’s up to us to develop the person and develop the player. For us, we take that part seriously. We’re going to wrap our arms around him and do the best we can to help him.’’Â
There will be plenty of familiar faces around for Carter to lean on. The Eagles are fast becoming a northeast satellite campus of the University of Georgia. Besides Carter and Smith, two of their first three 2022 draft picks were UGA players – first-round defensive tackle Jordan Davis and third-round linebacker Nakobe Dean.
There are worse ideas than building a defense around players from a two-time national champion.
“It’s going to be exciting playing with Jordan and Nakobe,’’ Carter said. “They were the leaders of our 2021 championship team. I know there are a lot of good players on this team and I plan on learning a lot [from them] when I get there.’’ Â
Paul Domowitch covered the Eagles and the NFL for the Philadelphia Daily News and Philadelphia Inquirer for four decades. You can follow him on Twitter at @pdomo.