PHILADELPHIA − The Eagles weren’t willing to take any chances, so with Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter still available, they traded up one spot to No. 9 to get the controversial lineman.
The Eagles traded with the Chicago Bears, sending the Bears the No. 10 pick and a fourth-rounder in 2024 to get Carter.
The Eagles had an idea that Carter would drop into their range. That became apparent when they didn’t trade up three spots to No. 7 for Texas running back Bijan Robinson.
Carter was rated the top overall prospect in the draft by many analysts. But he pleaded no contest to reckless driving and racing stemming for a car crash that didn’t involve his car, leading to the deaths of a Georgia teammate and football staffer.
He also reportedly had a poor Pro Day. But Carter was teammates at Georgia in 2021 with Eagles draftees last spring in fellow defensive tackle Jordan Davis (first round) and linebacker Nakobe Dean (third round). No doubt, Davis and Dean were consulted about Carter.
Things started falling the Eagles’ way when the Houston Texans, picking No. 2, took quarterback C.J. Stroud from Ohio State, then traded up from No. 12 to No. 3 with the Arizona Cardinals to take Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson.
But with the Colts taking Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson at No. 4 and Seattle going with Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon at No. 5, that pushed some of the top defensive players like Carter and Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez down towards the Eagles.
That continued when the Cardinals then traded back up from No. 12 to No. 6 for Ohio State offensive lineman Paris Johnson.
But the Raiders kept their pick at No. 7 and took edge rusher Tyree Wilson, paving the way for the Eagles to make their move up to No. 9 for Carter.
The Eagles chose him over players like Northwestern offensive lineman Peter Skoronski, Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez and Georgia edge rusher Nolan Smith.
For the Eagles, the action began just minutes before the draft started when they improved their position in the third round with a trade resulting from a tampering charge against the Cardinals. That stemmed from the Cardinals hiring Egles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon to be their head coach days after the Super Bowl.
As a settlement, the Eagles exchanged third-round picks with Arizona, moving up from No. 94 to No. 66, essentially going from near the end of the third round to near the beginning. The Eagles also gave the Cardinals their fifth-round pick in 2024.
The tampering charge resulted when the Cardinals spoke on the phone with Gannon after the Eagles’ won the NFC Championship game, a dead period for contacting prospective coaching candidates still alive in the playoffs.
Then the intrigue intensified minutes later when the draft began.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
