Eagles, Jalen Carter Agree to Four-Year Contract Extension to Make Him Highest-Paid Defensive Tackle in NFL History
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 19: Jalen Carter #98 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on before the game against the Los Angeles Rams during the NFC Divisional Playoff at Lincoln Financial Field on January 19, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Jalen Carter and the Eagles have finally agreed to a contract extension.
The Eagles have announced that they have agreed to terms with Carter on a contract extension through 2031. It’s a four-year, $152 million extension worth up to $160 million, including $106 million guaranteed. Carter was extension-eligible following the 2025 NFL season and had two years remaining on his rookie deal.
It’s a big-time move for the Eagles and Carter, who, for months, it’s been reported that the two sides have attempted to get a deal before the start of the 2026 season. Some thought that Carter could be traded if the two couldn’t agree to a deal, with for a while many thinking that a deal involving the Eagles and Browns for Myles Garrett could’ve included Carter.
Even after Garrett was dealt to the Rams, Carter trade rumors swirled in the rumor mill, with a potential deal to bring back former Eagle Josh Sweat back to Philadelphia, but those rumors are now done with following this deal.
The four-year, $152 million extension earns Carter an AAV of $38 million, now making him the highest-paid defensive tackle in NFL history, passing Jeffery Simmons, who signed a new contract back in June, with an AAV of $35.2 million.
In three seasons with the Eagles, Carter has slowly become one of the best defensive tackles in all of football, earning two Pro Bowl appearances, a Second-Team AP All-Pro, and finishing 12th in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2024. Carter has totaled 13.5 sacks, 108 total tackles, 16 QB hits, and has forced four fumbles, recovering one and scoring one defensive touchdown in his first three years.
2025 was a “down year” for Carter in terms of production, likely due to the nagging shoulder injury that affected him for the majority of the season and caused him to miss time towards the end of the regular season. He only recorded three sacks all season long, a career low for a season, and five tackles for loss.
Carter was drafted by the Eagles back in 2023 with the ninth overall pick when Philadelphia traded up one spot to draft the defensive tackle. Previously thought of as the best defensive and, to some, the best overall player in that draft, Carter dropped due to off-field concerns from teams, the most notable thing being his involvement in the car crash in Athens, Georgia, that killed a teammate and a recruiting staffer.
Matt Brown
Matt has been a Philadelphia sports fan all his life and spent four years at Penn State University majoring in Broadcast Journalism and minoring in Sports Studies. He previously covered Penn State’s field hockey, men’s and women’s basketball, and baseball teams while writing for a Penn State blog called Onward State. He has now covered the Phillies, Eagles, and Sixers for Philly Sports Reports since October 2024 and wants to pursue a career in Sports Journalism.
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