Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter underwent a procedure on both shoulders and will miss Monday night’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers, a league source confirmed Thursday.
Carter’s recovery is considered week-to-week, with the goal of having the defensive lineman fully healthy by the playoffs.
Eagles DT Jalen Carter underwent a procedure on both shoulders. (@AdamSchefter on it.) He’ll miss the Chargers game and is week to week.
Vic Fangio said Carter was playing through his shoulder ailments. It was affecting his play, especially against the run.
— Brooks Kubena (@BKubena) December 4, 2025
Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio confirmed Tuesday that Carter had been playing through shoulder ailments.
Carter was self-critical of his play in last week’s loss to the Chicago Bears, in which D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai helped combine for the most rushing yards against the Eagles since 2015 (281).
“There was some runs out there where I got drove back where I wasn’t making no effect on the play,” Carter said afterward.
Carter, a 2024 Pro Bowl player, is the fulcrum of Philadelphia’s defensive front. His absence is significant. The Eagles’ defensive EPA per play changes drastically when Carter is on the field (0.12) and off the field (-0.14), per TruMedia.
The Eagles use their interior linemen as leverage to generate backfield pressure. Carter’s one-game suspension in Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys contributed to their defensive struggles in that game (the Cowboys averaged 5.4 yards per rush).
Byron Young, a three-year veteran, is in a position to backfill Carter’s snaps. Ty Robinson, a fourth-round rookie, could also contribute.
Who will be asked to fill the void?
The spotlight on the Eagles’ interior defensive line will be on Moro Ojomo and Jordan Davis, who are the top players with Carter sidelined.
Ojomo has been one of the Eagles’ most productive pass rushers this season and is tied for the team lead with four sacks. Davis is known mainly for his run-stopping, but he’s also raised his performance against the pass rush.
Although Byron Young and rookie Ty Robinson will take on bigger roles, the key for the Eagles will be Ojomo and Davis. Ojomo already plays 65 percent of the defensive snaps; Davis plays 62 percent of the defensive snaps.
Don’t be surprised to see the Eagles bounce Brandon Graham inside on passing downs. It hasn’t been a staple of Fangio’s defenses because of the depth at defensive tackle, but they’ve tinkered with it in recent weeks, and it would make sense given the presence of Jaelan Phillips, Nolan Smith and Jalyx Hunt. Graham has had success in his career as an interior rusher.
“We could play him in there more,” Fangio said two weeks ago after he was used in that role against Dallas. “He can rush pretty good from in there. We were playing a lot of plays, and guys needed a break.” — Zach Berman, Eagles senior writer
