One of the more underdiscussed aspects of the Philadelphia Eagles' embarrassing Week 7 loss to the New York Giants was the absence of Jalen Carter. The offensive struggles understandably received the most attention following Thursday night's loss, but the Eagles' inability to stop the run can't be overlooked either. Carter, who surprisingly popped up on last week's injury report with a heel injury and was questionable heading into the game, ended up being inactive.
Fortunately, however, his injury is now behind him as he was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia said that Carter told reporters that he will be available to play on Sunday.
Eagles Will Have Jalen Carter Back for Week 7
This is an excellent development for the Eagles, who can't afford to be missing key players on the defensive end. Philadelphia is already short-handed at pass rush after Za'Darius Smith's retirement and has been struggling in coverage due to its underwhelming cornerback rotation. More absences in the defensive line would further decimate Vic Fangio's unit against the Vikings.
Without Carter, the Eagles allowed 172 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns to the Giants. Cam Skattebo averaged 5.2 yards per carry and scored three times. As a result, the Eagles received their lowest run defense and pass rush grades of the season per Pro Football Focus, with 47.5 and 59.1, respectively.
Rush Yards Allowed per Game | Yards per Carry Allowed | Rush TDs Allowed per Game | Eagles' Rush D PFF Grades | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
With Carter | 128.75 | 4.60 | 0.5 | 78.4, 63.7, 72.9, 74.4 |
Without Carter | 145.5 | 4.77 | 3.0 | 60.8, 47.5 |
It's not like the third-year defender has been off to a great start. Following the spitting incident in the season opener, Carter is off to a slower start than in previous seasons, not having recorded a sack and only putting up one tackle for loss in four starts. He has already logged five missed tackles per PFF. Yet, he is still a key member of the team and is a clear upgrade over his replacement, Byron Young. If the Eagles are going to get back to the defensive level they were at last season, they need Carter to be his best self.
Other than Nolan Smith Jr., Ogbo Okoronkwo, and Jakorian Bennett on the injured reserve list, the Eagles should have a clean bill of health for the rest of the week. Quinyon Mitchell had an injury concern heading into Wednesday, but he was a limited participant in practice and looks to be on track to take the field. This should give the Eagles a boost against a team with dangerous offensive weapons like Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.