DeSean Jackson Tweets Wild Take on Jalen Carter’s Debut

It’s no secret that Jalen Carter was the top storyline in the Eagles’ Week 1 win over the New England Patriots. He was as dominant as advertised and is an early favorite to be the biggest steal of the 2023 NFL Draft.

Game recognizes game in Philly, and DeSean Jackson took the Jalen Carter hype to another level on Monday.

Now that’s a hot take. And we absolutely love it.

Right now the highest-paid defensive tackle in NFL history is Aaron Donald, who’s on a three-year, $95 million contract.

Donald was clearly a stud from the jump, winning Defensive Rookie of the Year and making the Pro Bowl in 2014. He earned a defensive grade of 89.7 from Pro Football Focus in his debut, recording no hurries as a pass-rusher but notching 3 “defensive stops.”

Jalen Carter one-upped him. Carter earned a defensive grade of 92.1, and while he wasn’t quite as good against the run (1 defensive stop), he had 7 hurries and 1 sack.

For some context on how wildly good that debut was, Donald didn’t have a single game with a defensive grade of 92 or above in his rookie season, and he only did it once in his second season. Heck, even now Donald has only topped 92 in three of 29 games since 2021.

I’m not saying Jalen Carter is already as good as Aaron Donald, and we don’t want to overreact to one game (who am I kidding, yes we do), but it’s clear that he has the potential to become the best interior lineman in the league. There are plenty of reasons players don’t live up to the potential they show early in their career, but you’re kidding yourself if you’re trying to say Carter doesn’t have the upside to reach those heights.

The Carter hype train should pick up some extra steam in Week 2 as well, since the Minnesota Vikings just gave up 9 QB hits and 2 sacks to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 1. PFF also graded both of the Vikes’ starting guards poorly, with Ed Ingram getting a 61.3 and Ezra Cleveland posting a real stinker at 46.2.

Is DeSean Jackson getting ahead of himself?

Of course he is.

And we love him for it.

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