The reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles have taken a fascinating approach to the 2025 league year when it comes to the financials.
While GM Howie Roseman and the Eagles have agreed to some lucrative contract extensions (Saquon Barkley, Zack Baun, Lane Johnson) this offseason, they’ve also cleared a bunch of future cash by trading away C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Bryce Huff, while also parting ways with high-priced free agents like Josh Sweat and Milton Williams.
The future salary savings are necessary, of course, due the looming contract extension that’s coming for superstar defensive tackle Jalen Carter. That’s not due in 2025 — Carter has to wait at least one more season, per the CBA — but it figures to be at the top of Roseman’s to-do list come February of 2026.
The expectation is that Carter’s pending deal will supplant Kansas City Chiefs star Chris Jones as the highest-paid interior defensive lineman in NFL history. Jones’ five-year, $158.75 million deal included $60M in guarantees and $31.75M in average annual value.
Eagles Eric, an NFL stats analyst and host of The EDGE for the Eagles Pin Pull Network, broke down a mock extension for Carter that not only would best Jones’ deal, but blow it out of the water. Here are the details:
Proposed Jalen Carter contract extension
Total contract: 4 years, $144 million
Signing bonus: $34.5 million
Total guarantees: $77.75 million
Average per year: $36 million
The full breakdown includes three additional void years (a Roseman staple), keeping the salary cap hits below $20 million in each of the first four seasons (and below $6 million in Year 1). The extension would kick in after Carter’s fifth-year option and tether him to Philly through the 2031 season.
The title of highest-paid defensive player in the NFL currently belongs to San Francisco’s Nick Bosa in terms of max potential value ($170 million), and Cleveland’s Myles Garrett in terms of APY ($40 million). Still, Carter would be making elite EDGE rusher money as an interior defender, and something resembling this hypothetical contract would almost certainly get the deal done next winter.
There’s obviously a ton of moving parts to factor in here, as Carter will have to continue on his upward trajectory and avoid a serious injury during the 2025 season. But all signs point to Philly’s 24-year-old superstar getting a historic bag of cash at the start of the 2026 offseason.
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