One day after winning a second consecutive national title, Georgia’s Jalen Carter has made an unsurprising decision. The highly-touted defensive tackle announced on Tuesday (via Twitter) that he is declaring for the 2023 NFL Draft.
Carter was one of many five-star recruits the Bulldogs have landed in recent years, leading to significant expectations right away for him and the team. In eight games played as a freshman, Carter totaled just 14 stops on the season, but his three tackles for loss demonstrated his potential as a disruptive force along the defensive interior.
Last year, the 6-3, 310-pounder took a considerable step forward. While splitting reps with the likes of Jordan Davis and Devonte Wyatt, Carter posted 37 tackles, including 8.5 for a loss, along with three sacks. Over the course of the season, it became clear that the latter was a key contributor on the team’s vaunted defense despite being surrounded by older teammates. Both Davis and Wyatt went on to be first-round picks last April, but many felt by that point Carter was the most talented member of that year’s championship team.
With a larger role and even greater expectations for his junior campaign, Carter did not fail to deliver. He racked up seven tackles for loss and duplicated his sack total from the year before. His 32 QB pressures almost matched his 2021 total, helping lead to consensus All-American honors and a stellar PFF grade of 92.3. Carter is universally seen as the 2023 class’ top interior defensive lineman, in no small part due to his scheme and alignment versatility.
That ranking puts him in the running for the title of top defensive prospect, something he is competing alongside Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. for. Given their needs on both sides of the ball, but in the front seven in particular, both prospects figure to be on the radar of the Bears, who landed the No. 1 pick after a wild sequence during Week 18. The top slot would allow Chicago to draft a Justin Fields replacement at quarterback if they wished, but signs are pointing away from such a move.
At his season-ending press conference earlier today, Bears GM Ryan Poles said that he plans on having Fields return as the team’s starter in 2023, adding that he would need to be “blown away” by another prospect (likely Alabama’s Bryce Young) at the position (Twitter link via The Athletics’ Adam Jahns). That opens the door to a trade out of the top spot, of course, but also increases the chances that a defender will be the first to hear his name called this spring if the Bears stay at No. 1. Given his production, Carter would have a realistic chance at being the top pick in that event.
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