Why has top prospect Jalen Carter seen his stock drop in the 2023 NFL Draft?
Widely regarded as one of the top prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft, the former Georgia DT has seen his stock drop after reports of his involvement in off-field controversies.
Given that many teams have reportedly been scared off of the Georgia star, a number of analysts have been left to wonder just how far down the board the Bulldogs’ defensive star will fall when the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft gets underway on Thursday night.
Why has Jalen Carter’s value dropped?
Just a few months ago, Georgia’s defensive tackle, Jalen Carter was almost unanimously considered to be the player that would be selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft. That was of course before news broke revealing Carter’s involvement in a fatal vehicular crash which took the lives of his teammate, Devin Willock, and a staffer with the team, Chandley LeCroy. The result of the tragic situation was that Carter reached a plea agreement with Athens-Clarke County after a warrant was issued for his arrest and his Draft stock began to plummet.
Indeed, though he returned to the NFL Scouting Combine which was taking place at the time that reports confirmed his involvement, it was clear the damage was done. What’s more is that Carter was unable to complete his pro day workout, a fact that was further highlighted by the idea that he returned to the Combine weighing 9 pounds more than he did before. This is to say, that many teams have raised concerns about Carter’s mentality, which in turn has led to speculation that he could slip way down the board on Draft day.
What’s the landscape like in the 2023 Draft
Even without Carter’s involvement in the now well-documented tragedy and the subsequent fallout from it, the upcoming Draft class was already going to be skewed toward quarterbacks. This is largely due to the fact that a number of teams in the league are desperate for a signal caller right now and are seemingly willingly to fork out whatever is necessary to land one. From Bryce Young, to C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson and Will Levis, you can expect to see playmakers going high in the Draft because of the aforementioned scenario. Yet, that’s not to say we won’t see our fair share of defensive players as well. Devon Witherspoon, Christian Gonzalez and Will Anderson Jr. are just a few who we can expect to see going early on in the first round come Thursday night.
Indeed, it’s got to be said that Carter’s involvement in a situation that took two young lives is not going to help him on Draft night in any way. Interestingly, his agent Drew Rosenhaus recently closed the door on visits with teams that are looking outside of the top 10. Such a move would seem to suggest that Rosenhaus believes his client will be selected within the first 10 picks. Truth be told, we can’t blame him as Carter is widely regarded as a generational defensive talent, one that doesn’t come along very often.
What’s the final verdict on Jalen Carter?
Here’s the thing: Jalen Carter is worth the hype. Considered to be the best defensive tackle we’ve seen in years, there are realistically only a handful of players who could go before Carter in the Draft. To that end, it becomes a matter of the allure of his obvious skillset vs the possible pitfalls of his manner which seemingly landed him in trouble off the field. At this point, that’s a hard nut to crack when it comes to predicting how teams will act. Ultimately, what we can say is that there’s no doubt that Carter is worthy of a top-10 pick. Now, it’s just a matter of whether a prospective team is convinced that his recent off-the-field troubles aren’t indicative of a bigger problem which could derail his future in the NFL.