A Step Away? Young Eagles' Star Expects To Reach Lofty Goal

About to enter his third professional season and perhaps a year away from what’s expected to be a market-setting contract extension at defensive tackle, the Eagles’ Jalen Carter is ready to take center stage as the best at his position.

A second-team All-Pro in 2024-25, Carter has already been dominating the NFL as the most talented player on the NFL’s top-ranked defense despite just scratching the surface of his immense potential.

Earlier this week, a reporter ran Jeremiah Trotter Sr.’s assessment that Carter has been excelling even though the 24-year-old prodigy is still learning how to play the position, past defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.

“I agree with the point [Trotter was]  trying to make,” Fangio said. “... The good news about Jalen is twofold. One, he played very well for us last year, and two, he can still improve a lot.”

Carter was asked about his current status at DT, where Kansas City’s Chris Jones is typically thought to be the leader of the pack. Carter added New York Giants star Dexter Lawrence to the mix as well.

“I know who’s good and I know who everybody loves,” Carter said after Wednesday’s OTA practice. “Dexter Lawrence, Chris Jones. All of them. I see it, but at the end of the day, I’m still grinding and just doing my own thing. If my name pops up, then I guess congratulations to me. 

“Just keep going.”

Listed at  6-foot-3 and 314 pounds, Carter’s amazing blend of size, strength, and speed is such an anomaly that his ceiling as a player is not debated that much. It’s almost expected.

That said, Carter’s drive to be great should also not be dismissed from the equation.

“This is what I always wanted to do,” Carter said. “I wanted to be the best at what I do, try to be the best. I’m not there yet. I still got a lot of people in front of me that’s obviously been in the league a couple (more) years, got years of experience on me. But I’m just going to keep grinding every day.”

The only thing left to do is to complete the destiny. 

The expectations that follow Carter aren’t Pro Bowls or even All-Pros. Anything less than the best DT in football would be a disappointment. 

“Just keep winning,” Carter said when asked about the path to reaching that goal. “Keep winning 1-on-1s, double-teams, making an impact in the game, and doing what I did last year but even better.”