The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles, despite having very different track records over the last few years, find themselves in similar situations ahead of the 2026 NFL season. Both are vying for NFC East supremacy, and both are also doing so while facing fairly tough financial circumstances.
Simply put, both franchises have too many great players to pay all of them fairly. And that is as tough an equation to figure out in this league as any. George Pickens is playing on the franchise tag, and the Cowboys are squeezing every bit they can out of DeMarvion Overshown before his payday.
That's life in the NFL.
But there are better ways to build rosters than others. And while Dallas has played the hand it was dealt quite well this offseason, the Eagles just misstepped badly. They have been weighing what to do with Jalen Carter over the last month or so, and his name has even come up in some trade ideas.
That won't be happening anymore, however, as this villain to America's Team just signed a record-breaking contract. One that Cowboys fans should celebrate.
Cowboys fans have to love Eagles extending Jalen Carter on market-shattering deal
Just before training camp began, ESPN's Adam Schefter delivered the goods: Carter is signing a four-year extension in Philly for $152 milliion. That's $38 million per year. And to make matters crazier, he has $106 million guaranteed on the deal, and it can be stretched up to $40 million per year.
For those of you who are unaware, that is the biggest contract in league history for a defensive tackle. And while nobody in Dallas would deny that Carter is a great player who has enjoyed his share of success against the Cowboys, does anybody in this fanbase, or even theirs, think he is worth that?
Carter had some serious character concerns coming out of college, and his spitting on Dak Prescott in last year's season opener, to many, felt like a sign that he hadn't matured as much as people thought. And when building an NFL franchise, it's about giving the right people the money.
Do the Eagles really feel that confident in Carter, both on and off the field, to reset the market for him and take a piece of NFL history with them in the process? That feels like a gamble that Howie Roseman is too smart to make. And yet, it's a bet he is making, unhedged.
With young players like Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell both potentially needing extensions from Philadelphia next offseason, sinking so much money into Carter feels a bit ill-advised. He's now making $3.5 million more per season than the next-highest-paid defensive tackle. That's a chasm.
So, while Jerry and Stephen Jones are making magic happen and keeping everyone cool and under the salary cap, the Eagles are going off the rails and extending someone who, as a player, isn't worth that much, but certainly isn't worth that much when considering any other factors.
In a few years, it wouldn't surprise me if Cowboys fans look at a moment like this and say, 'This is when things got better for us.' Nobody wants Carter to get in trouble off the field again, but if he could just underperform and take up an obscene amount of cap space and cash, that'd do just fine for Dallas.
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