Jalen Carter’s ejection didn’t determine Cowboys vs. Eagles, but it very well could have. The season started on an extremely weird note before the very first snap took place, with Philadelphia’s star defensive tackle approaching Dallas QB Dak Prescott and spitting on him right after the starters took the field.
Carter apologized for the incident after the game, but that didn’t help the Eagles on the field as they were forced to narrowly fend off their NFC East rivals in the opener — narrowly winning 24-20. The big issue was the normally stout Eagles defense, which allowed over 300 yards, and watching as running back Javonte Williams scampered into the end zone for two touchdowns.
Lacking Carter’s presence in the middle was a big factor not just against the run, but with a lack of interior pressure the pocket was relatively clean for Prescott, who connected with CeeDee Lamb seven times for 110 yards. All this because of one boneheaded moment that never needed to happen.
What if there was more to this moment that meets the eye? What if Carter was actually provoked? What if there was a second spitter? It doesn’t excuse him hocking a loogie onto Prescott’s chest, but it certainly does add a little more context as to why the Eagles’ DT ha such an extreme reaction. As it turns out Prescott was the first spitter, and this whole thing might have been a case of mistaken intent.
Moments before the incident took place we have video from another angle showing that Prescott spat in Carter’s general direction while they were jawing at each other.
Dak even hits him with the smile and vertical head nod for good measure. There is absolutely no doubting that Prescott was trying to bait Carter with it. I doubt he expected his opponent to walk up and spit on him, but at least throw him off his game for the first series and perhaps pressure him into a dumb penalty. In the end he got much more than he hoped for, as Carter was hit was a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and ejected from the game. It was a dream scenario for the Cowboys knowing they no longer had to deal with Carter’s extreme interior pressure.
Prescott is doing a masterful job in the aftermath to cover his saliva — chalking it up to a big ol’ misunderstanding.
If we read between the lines and play this right down the middle we get a fairly clear picture of how things likely went down:
There’s no doubt this was a huge factor in the game itself. Prescott said that the Cowboys’ planning was heavily invested in blocking schemes that would account for Carter and take pressure off Booker as a result. Seeing him kicked from the game was the perfect solution to their biggest problem on offense.
It remains to be seen if the NFL will do anything. By the letter of the law Prescott should likely be fined for his spit as well, and Carter assessed a much larger fine for actually spitting on an opponent. Sportsmanlike Conduct is a point of emphasis for the league this season, so immediately they might want to make an example out of Carter.
Just wait until these teams meet again in Week 12. There will be more fireworks.
