Eagles roster outlook: Defensive tackle
The Philadelphia Eagles’ Super Bowl season is over and the 2025 NFL offseason is officially here. We’re continuing our Eagles roster outlook series by examining the defensive tackle position. PREVIOUSLY: Quarterback | Running back | Tight end | Wide receiver | Offensive tackle | Offensive guard | Center | Edge rusher.
THE PLAYERS
JALEN CARTER
STATS: 831 snaps, 42 total tackles, 4.5 sacks, 12 TFLs, 2 forced fumbles, 16 QB hits, 52 QB hurries, 6 pass deflections
PLAYOFF STATS: 237 snaps, 11 total tackles, 2 sacks, 2 TFLs, 1 forced fumble, 7 QB hits, 16 QB hurries, 2 pass deflections
REVIEW: Prior to the 2024 season, BGN’s Jonny Page wrote about how Carter had Defensive Player of the Year upside. That dominant ability was fully on display in the Eagles’ Week 3 win over the New Orleans Saints, where Carter totally wrecked their entire offense. Carter continued to excel over the course of the season, often drawing extra attention that created one-on-one opportunities for his teammates. For his efforts, Carter made his first career Pro Bowl in addition to being named second-team All-Pro. Carter was responsible for arguably the biggest two play sequence from the Eagles’ Super Bowl season when he sacked Matthew Stafford and then pressured the Los Angeles Rams quarterback into an incompletion for a game-sealing turnover on downs in the Divisional Round. The Eagles were never in more danger of losing in the playoffs than they were before Carter saved the day. Another aspect of Carter’s impressive season is how often he played. Vic Fangio rode him hard; Carter logged 79.4% of the Eagles’ total defensive snaps. By contrast, he only played 563 snaps for 48.5% as a rookie.
OUTLOOK: Carter is currently signed through 2026 and the Eagles have a fifth-year option they can exercise for 2027. If Carter continues to progress as a game-wrecking force, he very well might be DPOY as soon as next season. And he’ll likely be one of the highest paid defenders in the NFL when he becomes eligible for a contract extension next year.
MY TAKE: Stay.
MILTON WILLIAMS
STATS: 501 snaps, 24 total tackles, 5 sacks, 7 TFLs, 1 forced fumble, 10 QB hits, 39 QB hurries, 1 pass deflection
PLAYOFF STATS: 153 snaps, 7 total tackles, 2 sacks, 2 TFLs, 1 forced fumble, 2 QB hits, 11 QB hurries, 2 pass deflections
REVIEW: Williams had a great training camp and that offseason success carried over into the regular season. With Carter often drawing extra attention, Williams crushed his one-on-one opportunities to log a career high in sacks. Williams finished the season strong by shining in Super Bowl LIX with two sacks (including a strip-sack on Patrick Mahomes) and two TFLs.
OUTLOOK: If the salary cap didn’t exist, the Eagles keeping Williams would be a no-brainer. He’s an ascending defensive lineman who only turns 26 in April. He’s extremely athletic. He’s only missed one game in his entire career. Williams deserves to get paid … and he likely will. But given that the Eagles have limited resources to work with, I just don’t think spending them on Williams is the right play for them. With reports that Osa Odighizuwa, who is in a similar position to Williams, could make over $21 million per year … Williams is about to get PAID. Again, I believe Williams has earned his money. But this is a guy who had half of a sack in 2023. He played better than that number would suggest, to be clear. But Williams isn’t a player the Eagles MUST keep. Especially when 1) there are other defensive tackles who can excel playing next to Carter, 2) the Eagles have a potential in-house replacement for Williams in Moro Ojomo, and 3) the 2025 NFL Draft is loaded with DT talent. It’s unfortunate the Eagles can’t keep Williams but letting him walk is the right call for them. His departure will help the Birds when it comes to acquiring compensatory picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
MY TAKE: Go.
JORDAN DAVIS
STATS: 388 snaps, 27 total tackles, 1 sack, 3 TFLs, 0 forced fumbles, 1 QB hit, 12 QB hurries, 2 pass deflections
PLAYOFF STATS: 57 snaps, 6 total tackles, 2 sacks, 2 TFLs, 0 forced fumbles, 2 QB hits, 3 QB hurries, 1 pass deflection
REVIEW: After logging 519 snaps (45%) in 2023, Davis only logged 388 snaps (37%) this season. Including the playoffs, the 2022 first-round pick played the fourth-most snaps of any Eagles defensive tackle. Davis’ impact arguably goes beyond the box score since he’s often tasked with eating space. And he actually did show up with some big plays in the stat sheet during the postseason; he doubled his sack total from the regular season.
OUTLOOK: Declaring Davis a bust is obviously too harsh. But it’s fair to say he hasn’t exactly lived up to high expectations associated with being the No. 13 overall pick. It’ll be very interesting to see how the Eagles handle his contract situation moving forward. 2025 is the last year of Davis’s rookie contract but the Eagles must decide to exercise his fifth-year option or not by the May 1 deadline. If they do pick it up, they’ll be handing over a fully guaranteed $11.7 million value to Davis for the 2026 season. That’s a lot of money for a player who was basically DT4 this past season. And based on that usage, it doesn’t seem like Vic Fangio is going to massively expand his role moving forward.
MY TAKE: Stay.
MORO OJOMO
STATS: 388 snaps, 20 total tackles, 0 sacks, 0 TFLs, 0 forced fumble, 5 QB hits, 33 QB hurries, 0 pass deflections
PLAYOFF STATS: 102 snaps, 7 total tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFLs, 0 forced fumbles, 1 QB hit, 7 QB hurries, 0 pass deflections
REVIEW: Ojomo went from only playing 68 snaps as a rookie in 2023 to being DT3/DT4 in 2024. He played the same amount of regular season snaps as Davis and he played more than Davis in the playoffs. Ojomo was more disruptive than zero sacks would indicate; he ranked 20th out of 119 interior defenders in Pro Football Focus’s Pass Rush Productivity rate.
OUTLOOK: With Williams likely to leave in free agency, there’s an opportunity for Ojomo to have a bigger role in Year 3. There’s reason to believe he can make another leap in his development.
MY TAKE: Stay.
THOMAS BOOKER
STATS: 166 snaps, 18 total tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFLs, 0 forced fumbles, 2 QB hits, 3 QB hurries, 1 pass deflection
PLAYOFF STATS: 11 snaps
REVIEW: After originally joining Philly’s practice squad in 2023, Booker signed a futures contract to spend the 2024 offseason with the Eagles. Once considered a long shot to make the team, Booker played well enough last summer to earn a roster spot as a depth defensive tackle. Although he only played sparingly, he did do some nice things whenever he was on the field.
OUTLOOK: Booker is signed through 2025. I think it’s fair to believe the 25-year-old might be able to take on a bigger role in the Eagles’ DT rotation. At the very least, he could be a good DT5 to have around again next season.
MY TAKE: Stay.
BYRON YOUNG
REVIEW: The Eagles claimed Byron Young off waivers in late August and waived Marlon Tuipulotu in favor of him. Young was a healthy scratch for every game until the Eagles placed him on injured reserve in late October. The team opened Young’s practice window in early January to allow him to take reps for three weeks. They never seemed intent on actually adding him back to the roster.
OUTLOOK: The Eagles added Young — the No. 70 overall pick from the 2023 NFL Draft — because they value the 24-year-old’s potential. In his first offseason with the Eagles, Young will have an opportunity to prove he deserves to make the regular season roster, likely as DT5 or DT6. Not going to assume he sticks around but it’s possible he does.
MY TAKE: Go.
GABE HALL
REVIEW: The Eagles originally signed Hall as an undrafted rookie free agent following the 2024 NFL Draft. He spent the entire season on the practice squad before signing to the Eagles’ offseason roster after Super Bowl LIX.
OUTLOOK: Hall will be fighting an uphill battle to make the Eagles’ 2025 regular season roster but he’ll get a chance in offseason practices and preseason games to show he belongs.
MY TAKE: Go.
NFL FREE AGENCY OR TRADES
Williams will likely leave in free agency and I don’t see the Eagles spending big money to replace him. It’s easier to envision them adding depth to the position, if anything.
San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch said former Eagles defensive tackle Javon Hargrave is going to be released as a post-June 1 cut. If any new money he makes is going to merely offset what the Niners already owe him, it doesn’t really matter what he’s going to be paid on his next deal. It’ll be more about which teams he wants to play for … and maybe he wants to return to Philly.
The Chicago Bears recently released DeMarcus Walker, who overlapped with Vic Fangio on the Denver Broncos from 2019-2020.
Mario Edwards Jr. has some Eagles connections. Howie Roseman unsuccessfully tried to claim him off waivers in 2018. He also overlapped with Eagles senior defensive assistant/defensive line coach Clint Hurtt on the Seattle Seahawks in 2023.
Old friend Marlon Tuipulotu will be a free agent.
NFL DRAFT APPROACH
There’s a good chance the Eagles will take a defensive tackle with the No. 32 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. This year’s DT class is said to be loaded. Names commonly linked to the Eagles in mock drafts include: Darius Alexander, T.J. Sanders, Walter Nolen, Tyleik Williams, and Shemar Turner. It’ll be surprising if the Eagles don’t draft a defensive tackle before Day 3.