The Philadelphia Eagles already had to play one game without All-Pro defensive tackle Jalen Carter this season, so they likely cringed a little when they heard what Carter told reporters about his current injury situation.
Carter has been dealing with a nagging shoulder injury that’s been lingering since training camp. The injury flared up in last week’s 31-25 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, limiting him to just 49 of the team’s 72 defensive snaps.
There was also one play in particular in the fourth quarter that may have made things worse for Carter.
With 7:49 left in the game, Carter flushed Mayfield out of the pocket and forced him to roll out to his right. As he chased him down, Carter dove at Mayfield’s feet, and though he didn’t get the sack, his pressure forced Mayfield into throwing an interception to rookie linebacker Jihaad Campbell.
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Carter was slow to get up, and he was clearly favoring his injured shoulder. He’s still feeling the effects of what happened days later, admitting to reporters that things with his shoulder had gotten “a little serious.”
“Yeah, kind of like, you’re just going against O-linemen, and I was striking every play,” Carter said, via SI.com. “So there’s going to be that one play that kind of tweaks it, and kind of feels it. But we do things to help it before the game, with stretching or just working it out.
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“… Sometimes I get a rush in or I’m playing the run and I feel it. I drop my shoulder or something. I can’t let that be the blame. I’m still out there, I’m still playing. If it’s hurting me that bad I’ll just stop.”
Carter logged one tackle, four pressures, four hurries, and one run stop against the Bucs, according to Pro Football Focus, and that’s not the only game he hasn’t looked like himself in.
The 24-year-old Pro Bowler hasn’t recorded a sack yet this season, and he’s on track for 58 pressures and 37 hurries this year — a far cry from the 75 pressures and 52 hurries he generated last year. While Carter’s injury issue may be holding him back some, he also admitted that it’s not bad enough right now to keep him off the field.
“Everybody has injuries, depending on if it’s small or if it’s big, but when the right time comes, if I need to stop and take a little break to work more on my shoulder, that time is going to come,” Carter remarked. “But as of right now it feels good enough to play.”
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