Jalen Carter NFL Draft Overview
Position: Interior Defensive Line, Defensive Tackle
Height: 6’-3”
Weight: 310 pounds
School: Georgia
2023 NFL Draft: Jalen Carter Scouting Report
Following three strong years at Georgia, Jalen Carter enters the 2023 NFL Draft as a top-two prospect. The 20-year-old has displayed excellent athleticism and decent production and is widely viewed as one of the best players in the class. In 2022, Carter played in 13 games and managed 32 tackles with seven for loss and three sacks. He also defended three passes and forced two fumbles. For an interior defensive lineman, those are some good numbers. The 92.3 PFF grade also reflects Carter’s strong year. His efforts were rewarded as the Georgia standout was named a unanimous All-American and First-Team All-SEC. He was named in the Second-Team All-SEC in 2021. In both 2022 and 2021, Carter was considered an integral part of Georgia’s dominant front seven that helped the team to two National Championships.
With Carter, the biggest questions surround his character and intangibles. As a football player and athlete, Carter’s talents cannot be denied. However, with the current charges mounted against Carter, the character concerns seem very real. Nevertheless, Carter has fought his corner and some of his teammates have also voiced their support for him.
Strengths
- Interior player with good pass-rush ability (very rare trait);
- Incredible raw athlete, excellent size-speed-strength combination;
- Very high motor, can chase runners sideline-to-sideline;
- Good versatility, can play 0, 1, 3 and 5-techniques;
- Excellent at occupying and obstructing rush lanes;
- Able to wriggle free from blocks to impact ballcarriers;
- Explosive first step;
- High functional strength, enough to get blockers to backpedal;
- Has the ability to slip through blockers with surprising agility;
- Three-sport athlete entering college (led to comparisons to Hall-of-Famer, Warren Sapp).
Weaknesses
- Serious character concerns, charged with reckless driving and racing in connection with fatal crash involving Georgia teammate and staffer;
- Played in a rotation at college level, questions about whether he can play for long durations at a time;
- Shows some rawness and unrefined technique, especially when it comes to pass-rush moves;
- Sometimes plays with poor pad level and gives up leverage;
- Only started one year of college football;
- Needs to develop more consistent pass-rush plans;
- Some have argued that he is a beneficiary of being part of a stacked defense at Georgia.
NFL Comparison: Quinnen Williams
Teams With Need At Position: Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks, Detroit Lions, Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles
Projection: Top Ten
Bottom Line on Jalen Carter
The biggest questions around Carter are to do with the character concerns. Carter’s arrest and charge over the reckless driving and racing incident are truly concerning. Many pundits do not believe that his draft stock should fall too much but, at the end of the day, Carter’s scandal is not ideal for any high draft pick. Even before the incident became viral, there were questions about Carter’s effort and character. Todd McShay had made comments late in 2022 that questioned Carter’s leadership and whether he gets along with teammates in the locker room. With the arrest now also lurking, Carter’s stock has undoubtedly fallen due to the concerns around his intangibles.
What is not in doubt is how accomplished Carter is as a football player. It does not take a professional scout to identify Carter’s talents, he was a disruptive impact player for the Georgia defense and was a key cog to their National Championship titles. His elite athleticism means that, of all the prospects in the class, Carter arguably has the highest ceiling. His unique ability to rush the passer as an interior defender is also a huge asset, and one that can be game-changing for NFL teams. Just look at the impact that the likes of DeForest Buckner and Chris Jones have on their respective teams.
The question remains, is Carter a generational prospect? The answer is no. Carter has unique athleticism that could be construed as generational for his size. However, his lack of technique refinement and dominant pass-rush moves means he is not a generational talent. The high ceiling will be appealing to a lot of teams. However, for Carter to fulfill that ceiling, his eventual drafters will need to ensure that the character concerns can be overcome. That, in itself, is a big uncertainty.
Main Photo: Mark J. Rebilas – USA TODAY Sports
