Tag: jalen carter

Devon Witherspoon reponds to finishing fourth in DROY voting

After the news broke, Seattle’s angry little goblin in the slot shared a perfect response on Twitter.

NFL players don’t vote on these AP awards, but they are about to find out what happens when a competitor like Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon gets underestimated.

Last night was the league’s annual Honors showcase, where awards were handed out to a variety of players. One race to watch for the Seahawks was Defensive Rookie of the Year, where Witherspoon was one of five finalists. We had presumed that Jalen Carter would win, but in the end it was Will Anderson who took the hardware home. Here’s how the voting broke down.

You may have noticed something strange in there. Not only did Spoon not win, he didn’t even finish among the top three – receiving less than half the total votes Carter got and nearly one-third of Anderson’s.

That means clearly some folks have not gotten the message yet.

After the news broke, Seattle’s angry little goblin in the slot shared a perfect response on Twitter.

The greatest athlete of all time thrived on slights like these, either real or imagined. Seeing Spoon respond this way makes us believe he has a similar drive and it’s exactly the kind of thing you want to see as a Seahawks fan.

This new motivation, combined with a natural second-year development and the added influence of defensive mastermind head coach Mike Macdonald may be enough to catapault Spoon into the Defensive Player of the Year race as soon as the 2024 season.

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Eagles’ DT Jalen Carter finishes 2nd in AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting

Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter finished 2nd to Texans Will Anderson in AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting

Jalen Carter was the front runner for most of the season, but after fading down the stretch, Houston Texans pass rusher Will Anderson Jr. has been named the Associated Press NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Anderson received 16 first-place votes, compared to Carter’s 14, and he received 151 votes compared to Carter’s 122.

Anderson Jr. is the first Houston Texans player to win the award since 2009 and the third in franchise history. Anderson’s first-year head coach, DeMeco Ryans, won the prize for the Texans in 2006, and Brian Cushing captured the award in 2009. The Texans swept the rookie awards, with quarterback C.J. Stroud winning Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Anderson logged 45 tackles, ten tackles for loss, 22 quarterback hits, 7.0 sacks, and a pass defensed in 15 games — leading a Texans defense that improved from 24.7 points per game allowed in 2022 to 20.8 points per game allowed in 2023.

Anderson registered 59 pressures on the season, the third-most by a rookie over the last five seasons — trailing only Nick Bosa (80 in 2009) and Micah Parsons (67 in 2021).

It’s a frustrating finish to a season that started utterly dominant for Carter.

Through the first nine weeks, Carter generated 29 pressures (tied for eighth in the league among interior defensive linemen), according to Pro Football Focus, including four sacks and 20 hurries.

During the first half of the season, Carter played 49% of the defensive snaps (despite missing Week 6 against the New York Jets with an injury), second among Eagles defensive tackles behind only Fletcher Cox.

His production fell off down the stretch.

Carter finished his rookie year with 6.0 sacks, 33 tackles, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery (which he returned for a touchdown) in 16 regular-season games.

Carter started just one game and played 51 percent of the Eagles’ defensive snaps, but the ninth overall pick in the 2023 Draft was third on the team in sacks and fifth among all rookies.

Studs and duds from the Eagles 2023 season

We’re looking at the studs and duds from the Philadelphia Eagles 2023 regular season

The Eagles are set for wholesale changes as owner Jeffrey Lurie and GM Howie Roseman evaluated Nick Sirianni’s future following Philadelphia’s historic collapse, finishing the season 1-6 after a 10-1 start.

The first domino to fall is All-Pro center Jason Kelce, 36, who reportedly told his teammates he is retiring after 13 seasons with the Eagles but may now be having a change of heart.

Brandon Graham, who turns 36 in April, says he wants to return to the Eagles for one more final season, his 15th, and he’s one of the few guys on the roster deserving of writing his final script.

According to Over The Cap, Philadelphia has 20+ free agents, and we’re looking at the studs and duds from a disappointing finish.

Eagles’ report cards: Grading Philadelphia’s rookie class entering the 2024 offseason

We’re handing out grades and reviewing our rookie report card for the Philadelphia Eagles seven player 2023 NFL draft class

The Eagles entered training camp last summer with 17 rookies they believed could provide a bridge to the future and instant impact at crucial positions.

The 2023 class included seven talented players after the 2023 NFL draft, in which the team received glowing grades from experts and analysts.

Philadelphia landed five total defenders and four real players in the trenches, landing Tyler Steen from Alabama in the third round.

The Eagles also added plenty of undrafted talent.

Howie Roseman has raved about previous UDFA classes, with several big-named stars holding second-day draft grades.

Philadelphia had nine undrafted rookies that offered the potential to become critical contributors for years.

Mekhi Garner, Ben VanSumeren, and Eli Ricks saw key snaps as rookies, while Kelee Ringo will likely enter 2024 as a starter after some early learning curves.

With the young guys fully entrenched and the team looking towards April’s NFL draft, we’re handing out grades for 2023.

A pair of former Georgia Bulldogs named finalists for NFL awards

Two former Georgia Bulldogs named finalists for NFL awards

Former Georgia Bulldogs Matthew Stafford and Jalen Carter are finalists for a couple of marquee NFL awards after impressive 2023 seasons.

Stafford is up for Comeback Player of the Year after leading the Los Angeles Rams to a wild-card round appearance, ultimately losing 27-24 to the Detroit Lions.

The former Georgia quarterback had a injury-plagued season in 2022 that limited him to only nine games. There were talks of retirement for the veteran, but his 15th NFL season proved he still has plenty of gas left in the tank.

Stafford finished 11th in the league in passing yards (3,965), tied for 11th in touchdowns (24), ranked 10th in interceptions (11) and posted a 63.7 QBR, good enough for sixth in the NFL.

Carter is a finalist for Defensive Rookie of the Year after an outstanding first year with the Philadelphia Eagles, who ultimately lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 32-9 in the wild-card round.

Carter continued his high level of play that we witnessed for three years in Athens. Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded rookie racked up 33 tackles, six sacks, 43 quarterback pressures, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick.

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Winners will be announced at the NFL Honors on Feb. 8 at 9 p.m. ET. The show will air on CBS and the NFL Network and will be available to stream on Paramount+ and NFL+.

Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr. among finalists for DROY

Could Joey Porter win Defensive Rookie of the Year?

The Associated Press released the list of five finalists for Defensive Rookie of the Year. Pittsburgh Steelers rookie cornerback Joey Porter Jr. used a strong final 11 games when he was inserted into the starting lineup. Here’s a full rundown of the finalists.

Devon Witherspoon 1 of 5 finalists for AP Defensive Rookie of the Year

Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon is one of five finalists for the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year award.

Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon is one of five finalists for the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year award.

Spoon will be in the running along with Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter, Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr., Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. and Rams defensive tackle Kobie Turner.

Witherspoon’s claim to win the award is as strong as any. However, as has been the case since the season started Carter remains the odds-on favorite to win DROY. Spoon’s case isn’t helped by missing three games with a hip pointer injury, nor his atrocious tackling against the Steelers in Week 17. Our best guess is that Carter will win out.

That said, there may be no young defender in the NFL with a higher ceiling. Rookie of the Year or no, Witherspoon has all the ability in the world to make multiple All-Pro teams.

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Eagles’ DT Jalen Carter named a finalist for AP Defensive Rookie of the Year

Philadelphia Eagles star Jalen Carter has been named a finalist for the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year Award

The NFL and The Associated Press have announced the finalists for their annual awards for the 2023 NFL season.

Lamar Jackson, Christian McCaffrey and Dak Prescott are finalists for The Associated Press 2023 NFL Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year awards.

For Eagles related news, Jalen Carter has been named a finalist for the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year award.

A nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the league completed voting before the playoffs began.

Award winners will be announced at NFL Honors presented by Invisalign, an Align Technology brand, on Thursday, Feb. 8 at the Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas. NFL Honors, the league’s primetime awards special, will air live at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on the CBS Television Network and NFL Network and stream live on Paramount+ and NFL+. The program may not air live in all time zones.

The full list of awards and finalists include:

Early look at the 15 biggest salary cap hits for the Eagles in 2024

We’re looking at the Philadelphia Eagles 15 biggest salary cap hits for the 2024 NFL season

After being officially eliminated in the wild card round, the Philadelphia Eagles are preparing for 2024, and they have a lot of work to do to be compliant with the league’s cap rules before the start of the league year.

Where things currently stand, the Eagles are expected to have roughly $20,284,984 in cap space via OverTheCap, which ranks 18th in the NFL per Over The Cap.

That number could grow if the team opts to part ways with some expensive contracts or critical veterans.

Before that, let’s take a look at the 15 Philadelphia Eagles players that have the biggest salary cap hits in 2024.

2024 NFL Draft: Final compensatory pick projections for the Eagles

Philadelphia will receive a third-round compensatory pick and three fifth-round compensatory picks, according to Nick Korte of OverTheCap after losing Javon Hargrave, Isaac Seumalo, Andre Dillard and T.J. Edwards in free agency.

The Eagles made several critical signings during the 2023 NFL free agency process, with all of the additions being one-year deals.

Philadelphia GM Howie Roseman watched ten contributors leave on the open market.

Thanks to his shrewd maneuvering and roster building, the Eagles are in line for four valuable compensatory picks in 2024, according to Nick Korte of Over The Cap.

The Birds were slated to have six picks in the 2024 NFL draft, but thanks to the compensatory formula, they’ll have 10.

1 Eagles’ own pick
2 Eagles’ own pick
2 From Saints
3 Projected compensatory pick
5 From Vikings (can become fourth-round pick if conditions are met)
5 From Buccaneers
5 Projected compensatory pick
5 Projected compensatory pick
6 Eagles’ own pick, or the Titans’ sixth-round pick, whichever is better
6 Projected compensatory pick

Here’s an early look at the four compensatory picks and how Philadelphia landed the extra assets.