Eagles turning the page on Jalen Carter spitting incident as All-Pro DT set to play vs. Chiefs in Week 2

PHILADELPHIA -- Once the dust settled, anything involving Jalen Carter and "spit-gate" was in the past. That was Week 1, as the Eagles would put it. 

Carter was ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct after he spat on Cowboys QB Dak Prescott moments before the first official snap of the NFL regular season opener last Thursday. This week, the league suspended the All-Pro DT for one game and added a $57,222 fine for his actions. It was decided that missing Week 1 would serve as his one-game suspension, and Carter will be available when the Eagles visit the Kansas City Chiefs for a Super Bowl rematch on Sunday.

But it was a long few days for Carter. The fallout of his spitting incident was felt in the locker room. He had some explaining to do amongst his teammates, who battled through four quarters without him and held the Cowboys' high-powered offense to 20 points. Carter also had to talk with his coaches, who certainly had some choice words for him. 

Whatever the Eagles' internal punishment was for Carter, that was handled in-house. The Eagles keep things close to their vest for a reason.

"I'll always keep those conversations in-house," Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said this week. 

"I'll continue to do that, much like if I had a conversation with you and we work together, and you would probably expect me to do the same thing, and that's my job as the head coach. All things like that with any conversations with players, whether it's of something that happens in a game, a moment in the game, there's information that I'll always keep in house."

How Carter explained himself to his teammates

Carter was quick to discuss the incident with his teammates, as team leaders moved fast to discuss the situation with him. Jalen Hurts and Lane Johnson were two notable teammates to talk with the 2023 first-round draft pick on Thursday night, and Carter spoke with several of his teammates in the 24 hours that followed. 

Jordan Davis, one of Carter's many teammates at Georgia, who is also in the Eagles locker room, revealed that Carter did talk to the defensive line and apologized for his actions. Davis, who has emerged as one of the leaders in Philly's locker room, wanted to see if Carter could learn from this transgression. 

"It's more of an understanding that he comes away with," Davis said. "He's like, 'I made a dumb decision, it won't happen again.' We believe that."

Sirianni preached that he wants his players to have a competitive mentality within the confines of the rules. Carter went beyond those limits, leaving Davis, Moro Ojomo and Byron Young to pick up the slack. Davis played 87% of the snaps vs. the Cowboys while Ojomo logged a whomping 90% -- a result of not having the services of their All-Pro defensive tackle. 

"I know everybody on the D-line and we don't look at it like it was a problem or anything," Davis said. "It was just unfortunate the way it happened. He came to us and he apologized. You don't really need an apology on the D-line. We know what's going on and we're gonna pick up the slack for him."

Did Carter learn his lesson? Davis has been like a big brother to Carter since their Georgia days and arguably knows him better than anyone else in the locker room. 

"At the end of the day, I'm sure he felt like crap," Davis said. "Anybody would feel like crap when leaving the team out like that. At the end of the day, he's gonna make up for it. I know he will."

The best solution for the Eagles was to handle the situation in-house and move on.

"I already had that conversation with him," Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts said. "We've turned the page on that, and we're all looking forward to the opportunity we have this week."

What Eagles can do moving forward

The Eagles' defense did lack the veteran leadership on the front line vacated by Fletcher Cox in 2023 and Brandon Graham in 2024. The two oldest players on this year's defensive line are Ogbo Okoronkwo (30 years old) and Patrick Johnson (27), but both players battled to make the 53-man roster. Most of the leaders on the defensive line are 26 or younger, showcasing the youth at the position.

A veteran leader was needed amongst that group. Enter Za'Darius Smith.

Smith admitted the Eagles actually wanted to sign him before Week 1. But the three-time Pro Bowl pass rusher asked the team if he could spend a few more days with family before arriving in Philadelphia, hence the Friday signing. 

Za'Darius Smith reveals why he signed with Eagles, relishing opportunity to be leader for young players

Chris Bengel

"You can't even compare [Carter] to anybody," Smith told CBS Sports. "He's different. He's an animal man. I know for sure by the way he moves. It's just crazy. He moves like he's 230 pounds, you know."

It took just one practice for the Eagles to see the impact of their proactive approach to players. Smith will serve as another voice in the room that can help Carter grow.

"I'm gonna help him. I'm gonna put my arms around him," Smith said. "We've been doing a great job today, as in working on our games together. Been coordinating with our reps. Hopefully you'll see us a lot on Sunday in the backfield."

The Eagles have the culture to move on easily from incidents like this, making it a thing of the past as quickly as possible. The suspension has been served, the fine has been paid and the internal discipline has been sorted out.

This isn't about Carter rebuilding his reputation. It's more about making sure something like this doesn't happen again.

"We can have next-level obedience in doing that, and that's just a challenge," Hurts said. "It's not necessarily a call out. It's more of a challenge. When we play disciplined football and we're disciplined in our preparation and pay great attention to detail, we can go out there and be confident that good things will happen. 

"So, overall discipline and focus -- that's a lot of the game and it's important."