Eagles’ Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter ready to take on more: ‘They’re the future’

Jordan Davis is a large man sweating the little things.

The Eagles defensive tackle is going into a pivotal third season with the team noticeably slimmer and is off to a promising start in the early going of training camp. After the team’s opening practice, a minute detail in Davis’ technique even earned a shout-out from the sometimes-terse Vic Fangio during the defensive coordinator’s film review session with his group.

“JD had a good practice yesterday,” Eagles linebacker Devin White said after Thursday’s session. “He was bending his legs. That was one thing Coach Vic kept saying, that when your legs are bending and you’re in this type of stance, you’re going to have a good down. And he was showing that throughout the film.”

Fangio added: “I thought Jordan showed some good movement abilities and was able to bend his body [in a way] I don’t think I’ve seen him do before.”

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Although it’s still early, Davis’ strong start to training camp is an encouraging development for Fangio, who has deployed space-eating nose tackles as main fixtures of his defense at previous stops.

Between Davis and his ex-Georgia running mate Jalen Carter, the ceiling of the Eagles defense this season largely will be impacted by how the pair of first-round picks fare in expanded roles on the interior line.

Speaking after Wednesday’s practice, veteran defensive end Brandon Graham said the group will belong to the pair this season.

“There’s a lot of question marks on what they’re going to do with Year 3 and 2,” Graham said. “They’re the future. And you want [general manager Howie Roseman] to feel comfortable after this year and say, ‘OK, I got my guys.’ I think they just want to prove that they’re the guys.”

Davis played 45% of the Eagles’ defensive snaps last season — up from 26% during his rookie year — but has yet to become the type of every-down interior rusher that the team envisioned when selecting him No. 13 overall in the 2022 NFL draft. In an effort to play better for longer, Davis said he spent the offseason working on his conditioning and that he dropped below the 350-pound mark that he played last season above as a result.

The byproduct is more of the praiseworthy bend when trying to defeat blocks or eat up space in the backfield.

“When you’re not tired, you can bend a little bit more,” Davis said. “When you get tired, that’s when you start to slack off on your technique and stuff like that; your technique gets a little worse. We just want to make sure we’re conditioned enough to play the same way.

“Not saying every rep is perfect, but it’s better. That’s one thing I try to do when I go inside, I want to watch the film and make sure I get better each practice. I’m sure Day 2 is better than Day 1.”

Everything points to Davis and Carter playing a significant amount of snaps this season. With Fletcher Cox, the group’s leader in playing time last year, now retired, the two defensive tackles sit atop the depth chart in earnest. Fangio also has a track record of rotating his rushers less than former Eagles defensive coordinator Sean Desai or even his predecessors, Jonathan Gannon and Jim Schwartz.

Carter played 51% of the team’s defensive snaps as a rookie last year and logged six sacks while flashing the potential to be one of the league’s most productive interior rushers, but tailed off toward the end of the season possibly because of the proverbial rookie wall. This year, the 23-year-old said he’s prepared to be a focal point of Fangio’s scheme.

“I know that my potential, and what I can do on the field is to have a big impact that can help the team and help the guys around me,” Carter said. “I know there’s probably going to be a lot on my back, but I’m ready for it. ... Last year, I didn’t finish how I wanted to finish, but it’s a new season, new me. You’re going to see better out of me this year.”

» READ MORE: Eagles’ free-agent additions on defense won’t matter if Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean can’t play

For Davis, it’s still too early to truly claim he’s reached the cliched “best shape” of his career, but the progress is apparent.

“I’m better than when I left,” Davis said. “Football shape is a lot different, obviously. You can do all the running you want to, but when you go against our O-line, it’s kinda tough. But it’s coming along.”

“You put a little sweat in the bucket, and eventually the bucket gets full.”