Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter is the sole rookie from 2023 to make it onto PFF’s top 50 NFL players list.
Jalen Carter was the runner-up for the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year award and is expected to play a significant role in future award scenarios following the retirements of Fletcher Cox and Aaron Donald.
Carter’s impressive rookie season propelled the Eagles’ second-year defensive tackle into Pro Football Focus’s top 50 NFL players of 2024 list, where he stands as the only 2023 rookie to be included.
DI JALEN CARTER, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
In the initial weeks of his rookie season in 2023, Jalen Carter performed at a level comparable to future Hall-of-Famer Aaron Donald. While this exceptional performance was difficult to maintain, he still concluded his debut season with an 89.0 PFF overall grade, ranking fifth in the NFL. Carter possesses the talent to reach the top of this list, a feat that few players, like Donald, have achieved so quickly at this position over the past decade.
During the first half of the 2023 season, Carter played 49% of the defensive snaps (missing only Week 6 against the New York Jets due to injury), ranking second among Eagles defensive tackles behind Fletcher Cox.
Carter ended his rookie year with 6.0 sacks, 33 tackles, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery (which he returned for a touchdown) in 16 regular-season games.
In the first nine weeks of 2023, Carter recorded 29 pressures (tying for eighth among interior defensive linemen), including four sacks and 20 hurries, according to Pro Football Focus.
