The road to the 2023 season continued on Thursday outside the Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, for the 2023 NFL Draft. Coming into the draft, the Eagles had the 10th and 30th picks in the first round.
Early in the first round, the Eagles traded up to the ninth pick with the Chicago Bears. They sent the Bears the tenth pick and a 2024 fourth-round pick. With the Eagles’ first pick, they selected Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter. Jalen Carter is six foot three and weighs 310 pounds.
At the 2023 NFL Combine, Carter’s production score was 86, which ranked him first among defensive tackles, 83 in athleticism, which was fourth among defensive tackles for a total score of 87, finish first among defensive tackles.
Collegiately, Carter played three seasons at Georgia (2020-22) with 83 tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss, six sacks, four pass breakups, two forced fumbles, three blocked kicks, and one catch for one yard, and one touchdown in 38 games for the Bulldogs. He is a two-time CFP National Champion.
In his final season, the 22-year-old from Apopka, Florida, had 32 tackles, seven tackles for loss, three sacks, three pass breakups, and two forced fumbles in 13 games, helping Georgia win their second national championship. He was named Unanimous All-American and First Team All-SEC in 2022. In 2021, Carter was named Second Team All-SEC.
The biggest concern for Carter going into this draft was whether would he fall after being arrested on March 1st for reckless driving and racing charges that resulted in the death of a Georgia player and a staff member. He entered no contest pleas to the charges on March 16th and was sentenced to serve 12 months of probation, pay a $1,000 fine, perform 80 hours of community service, and complete a state-approved defensive driving course, according to attorney Kim T. Stephens.
With the 30th pick, the Eagles took another Georgia player in linebacker Nolan Smith. Nolan Smith is six foot two and weighs 238 pounds. The 22-year-old from Savannah, Georgia, made 18 tackles, seven tackles for loss, three sacks, and one pass breakup in eight games for the Bulldogs as they won their second national championship.
At the 2023 NFL Combine, Smith ran a 4.39 in the 40-yard dash, 1.52 seconds in the 10-yard split, a vertical jump of 41.5, and a broad jump of 10’ 8”. In addition, his production score was 78, which ranked him 5th, and 85 in athleticism score, which ranked him first among linebackers for a total score of 80, which ranked him sixth.
Collegiately, Smith played for seasons at Georgia (2019-22) with 114 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, one interception, four pass breakups, three forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and one blocked kick in 46 games.
This is now the second season in a row that the Eagles have drafted two players from Georgia. Last year, the Eagles took defensive tackle Jordan Davis in the first round (13th pick) and linebacker Nakobe Dean in the third round (83rd pick) of the 2019 NFL Draft.
The Eagles will have two draft picks on Friday in the second round (62nd) and the third round (66th). Then on Saturday, the Eagles will have two picks in the seventh round (219th) and (248th).
