The Philadelphia Eagles' defense has been considered the NFL's best for most of the season, with multiple All-Pros and Pro Bowlers, but most of their success starts up front, particularly with one player.
Jalen Carter has been a terror for offenses this season, earning his first-round status from last season by putting up 42 tackles with 4.5 sacks, 16 quarterback hits and two forced fumbles. You'll find other defensive tackles with more impressive stats, but the former Georgia Bulldog's impact is about more than packing the box score. According to Pro Football Focus, he's the fourth-best pass-rusher for his position and brought the third-most pressures on quarterbacks this season. The two players ahead of him: Zach Allen and Chris Jones.
Carter was a problem for the Washington Commanders in both their matchups with the Eagles in the regular season, and the team knows that will be the case in the NFC Championship as well. Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury had high praise and respect for Carter, who had 10 combined tackles in Weeks 11 and 16.
"He's one of the most dominant players in the league, if not the most dominant that I've seen," Kingsbury said. "He can wreck a game by himself."
Carter has done plenty of that in the playoffs. Over the last two weeks, he's recorded seven tackles with five quarterback hits, three pass breakups and a forced fumble. During that span, he earned the third-best defensive grade for his position by PFF and was tied with Jared Verse for the most total pressures among all defenders.
Carter was the force that helped the Eagles finish their Divisional matchup with the Los Angeles Rams, who had multiple chances to take the lead and upset the Eagles in snowy conditions. Two plays after the Rams forced a safety by sacking Jalen Hurts in the end zone, Carter ripped the ball away from running back Kyren Williams, setting up a 23-yard field goal. Later, when the Rams faced a third-and-2 at the Eagles' 13-yard line, Carter brought down Matthew Stafford for a nine-yard loss. The play led to a fourth-and-11 that the Rams couldn't pick up.
But the Commanders don't need to look at other teams to know how disruptive Carter has been this season. He had a three-yard tackle for loss on Brian Robinson in their first matchup with the Eagles and blew up a fourth-down attempt in the fourth quarter that would have kept them in field goal range.
"98 [Carter] is as good a player as there is in the NFL right now," Kingsbury said on Dec. 19. "He wrecked us the first game, and they have some really good rushers."
Carter was kept more in check during the Commanders' 36-33 win over the Eagles, as he recorded just three tackles. Quarterback Jayden Daniels made him miss on an 11-yard run in the fourth quarter, which was part of Washington's game-winning drive that ended with Daniels throwing a touchdown pass to Jamison Crowder with six seconds left. Kingsbury's respect for Carter hasn't diminished, though.
"That guy's really come on," Kingsbury said. "I have a ton of respect for the way he plays. Whether they're up [or] down...he's playing hard. He's getting his wins. He changed that entire defense with his style of play this year."
The Commanders are still figuring out who will be charged with blocking Carter this weekend. Sam Cosmi's ACL injury he sustained against the Detroit Lions means the right guard position is in flux. Trent Scott replaced Cosmi in the Commanders' 45-31 win over the Eagles and played well in the matchup, allowing zero total pressures and recording the best pass-blocking grade among all the Commanders' offensive linemen.
But the Commanders have other options to consider. Michael Deiter has played center for most of his time in Washington but also has experience at guard. They could also bump Andrew Wylie down to guard and put Cornelius Lucas at right tackle.
Whatever player the Commanders choose will have a tough challenge against Carter, but it won't be on one person to account for the second-year pro. It will take all five of Washington's offensive line to account for him.
"Let's give a quick shout to Trent of coming in and really being somebody that can handle that," Quinn said. "But yes, that is absolutely how we go about it. And that would be there or at any spot, like what I was saying earlier, what's the best thing for us to win this game? And then that is all there is. And so, yeah, that's really where we're at in terms of the next three days of our practice."
