"I’m so sick to my stomach right now" - When Cowboys' Micah Parsons was left stunned by Eagles drafting Jalen Carter
University of Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter was speculated to be the No. 1 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft. During his three-season college career, Carter recorded 81 tackles and six sacks and finished with a 37-3 overall record.
He also won two CFP National Championships in 2021 and 2022, was a unanimous All-American in 2022, a first-team All-SEC (2022), and a second-team All-SEC in 2021. However, a driving incident that resulted in the deaths of Georgia lineman Devin Willock and staffer Chandler LeCroy caused Carter's draft stock to plummet.
As such, Jalen Carter was available when the Philadelphia Eagles hit the clock at No. 9 in the draft. Philly wasted no time in making their selection, and Carter became an Eagle.
Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons was among the panel for live draft commentary at Bleacher Report at the time. Ruing the incredible value a rival franchise had just attained, Parsons said:
“I’m just so sick to my stomach right now. I’m just sick. I’m just sick to my stomach. I’m just sick to my stomach. I can’t believe that many teams passed up on him. I’m truly just sick right now.”
Philadelphia had moved up from No. 10 to draft Carter. His inclusion only widened the gap between them and the Cowboys, as Philadelphia already had one of the best defenses in the NFL. Parsons was so upset that he almost walked off the set as he questioned the choices of other teams who had passed on Jalen Carter.
Jalen Carter & Eagles D help Philly to Super Bowl win, recording a remarkable stat in the process
Micah Parsons' worst fears came true in the 2024 season, as while the Cowboys missed the playoffs, the Eagles dominated the NFL. Dallas was soundly swept by their rivals, losing 34-6 and 41-7 in what was a forgettable 7-10 campaign.
Meanwhile, Philadelphia hit the playoffs off a 14-3 regular season, and considering they started the campaign 2-2, the team was in red-hot form. The Eagles' closest postseason games came early, with the Green Bay Packers and LA Rams putting up a fight but falling to 22-10 and 28-22 losses, respectively.
Then came the Washington Commanders, who found themselves falling to a 55-23 defeat in a game that got out of hand. Next up came the Kansas City Chiefs, and what transpired was one of the most one-sided games in Super Bowl history.
At one point in the third quarter, Philly had a 34-0 lead on the Chiefs, and while KC pulled off some late-game heroics to bring the final score to 40-22, it was over early.
A remarkable stat made the rounds after the game. Jalen Carter and the Eagles' D dominated the Chiefs' line, and Philadelphia recorded 6 sacks and 3 turnovers without blitzing once in the entire game. As per NBC, this was the fourth time a defense has not blitzed once in a game since Next Gen Stats began in 2016.