Jalen Carter and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, have been vindicated for a controversial decision after being selected with the ninth overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday.
Georgia defensive tackle Carter was the top talent on many analysts' draft boards, but off-field concerns saw him slide out of contention to be taken in the top five. But that did not stop the 22-year-old and his team from taking a risk by declaring he would not take part in any pre-draft visits to franchises picking outside the top 10, drawing criticism and setting up the possibility he could slide deep into the first round if the top 10 picks passed him by.
Carter was questioned by scouts for a perceived lack of effort in practice during his time at Georgia, and he attracted further scrutiny after facing two misdemeanours charges in connection with a car crash that killed two people in January. He pleaded no contest to the charges last month, being sentenced to 12 months probation and being ordered to pay a $1,000 fine and complete 80 hours of community service.
Carter may have missed out on the chance to be one of the first players selected in Kansas City on Thursday, but he did not have to wait long to hear his name called and he could not have picked a better landing spot.
The Eagles switched places with the Chicago Bears to rise from 10th to ninth in the order in return for a 2024 fourth-round pick, making sure they got the man they wanted with the Bears also mooted as a possible destination for Carter.
The Eagles' defensive front is already a menacing group, racking up 70 sacks in the 2022 regular season, leading the NFL by 15, and Carter will slot in nicely as Nick Siriani's team vie to get back to the Super Bowl after being edged out by the Kansas City Chiefs in Arizona in February.
NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport says the Eagles believe Carter is a risk worth taking.
He said: "It did not sound like the Georgia coaches were overly complimentary of the performance he put on, mostly in practice and off the field this past season, but what the Eagles do is they take the talent believing they have the infrastructure and the culture to get the best out of it.
"They need to make sure of that. They have got a couple of young Georgia guys who know Carter very well in their locker room and they need to make sure he leads them and leads with them in the right way. There is a bit of risk here for the Eagles but they believe they can handle it."
