Jalen Carter was the talk of the NFL Scouting Combine on Wednesday. But not because of his football prowess. Carter became the subject of conversation after local authorities in Athens, Georgia secured arrest warrants for the former Bulldog defensive lineman.
- Carter was the subject of arrest warrants in Athens, Georgia, due to an ongoing investigation into a fatal crash on Jan. 15, the Athens-Clarke PD said on Wednesday.
- Police say their investigation found that Carter and Chandler LeCroy โ a Georgia recruiting analyst โ were each operating vehicles in a manner consistent with racing after leaving downtown Athens at around 2:30 a.m. ET. At 2:45 a.m. The 2021 Ford Expedition that LeCroy was driving left the roadway, striking two power poles and several trees, police said.
- According to police reports, LeCroy and Georgia offensive lineman Devin Willock, 20, died in the crash. Others in LeCroy’s car, including Georgia offensive lineman Warren McClendon, were injured. Matt covered the news on Wednesday:
- Carter released a statement on Wednesday saying, “there is no question in my mind that when all of the facts are known, I will be fully exonerated of any criminal wrongdoing.”
- Carter indeed returned to Athens late Wednesday. Carter was booked at 11:33 p.m. ET and released at 11:49 p.m. after paying a $4,000 bond for the two charges.
- Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart called the chargers “deeply concerning.” It’s unknown how this will affect Carter’s draft stock, but it’s a situation to monitor. The Bears were a team connected to Carter, a potential number one pick in the NFL Draft.
- However, Jalen Carter has since returned to Indianapolis to finish his interviews, measurements, and other activities, per Ian Rapoport:
- Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty in America. Still, the news of Carter’s involvement in the fatal crash is unsettling, especially for teams prepared to invest millions into Carter in a couple of months.
- The Los Angeles Chargers appear to intend to keep veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen around:
- With the Chargers $20.3 million over the salary cap as of today, a Keenan Allen cut made plenty of sense financially. Cutting Allen would create $14.8 million in cap space for the Chargers. So if they plan on keeping Allen, they’ll have to make other cuts to become cap compliant if they don’t cut Allen.
- Outside linebacker Khalil Mack is a cut candidate who could open up $18.4 million. Cornerback Michael Davis could free up $7.4 million. Center Matt Feiler and Defensive tackle Austin Johnson would clear up $6.5 and $3.4 million, respectively. So thereโs $35.7 million in savings, which would give the Chargers roughly $15.2 million to work with this offseason, per OTC’s cap calculator.
- New Cardinals’ head coach Jonathan Gannon was asked about the 24 points and 212 yards his defense allowed as the Eagles blew a 10-point halftime lead in the Super Bowl at the combine. Here’s what Gannon had to say:
- โThey made a lot of good plays in that second half,โ Gannon said (via PFT). โWe werenโt able to get some stops when we needed to. I obviously could have done a better job of coaching a couple of things that I want out of the calls. Tough to swallow when you look back at that. Because, itโs such a big stage, and we didnโt get it done … But we learned a lot from it. Youโve got to give credit to Kansas City. But obviously, I could have done a lot better job with some of the things we were doing.โ
- On Wednesday, Eagles’ safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson didn’t take kindly to those comments. Gardner-Johnson quote-tweeted a video of Gannon’s response with the caption: โYou ainโt put us in a position to make plays.โ He later deleted the tweet.
- I’ve seen consistently from Eagles and NFL analysts around the league recently that Gannon’s tactics as a DC were never as strong as his scheme. It was a significant talking point in The Ringer’s Super Bowl preview episode of their staple NFL podcast, and the point came from Philly native and Eagles fan Benjamin Solak.
- At a combine media session, Jets head coach Robert Saleh said that quarterback Mike White “should be on this rosterโ in 2023. The Jets have already said that Zach Wilson will be back next season, and now Saleh has endorsed White as a fit for the 2023 roster.
- So, what gives? NFL teams carry two active quarterbacks on gameday, but the Jets have taken meetings with Derek Carr and been linked to Aaron Rodgers. Wilson is under contract for two more years. However, White will be an unrestricted free agent on March 15.
- The NFL Scouting Combine kicks off today with defensive linemen and linebackers going through the battery of tests. The action begins at 2:00 P.M. CT.
- I put together a list of players who have the most to gain in Indianapolis this weekend. If you missed it on Wednesday, here it is:
- Tomorrow is the NFL trade deadline. So, Tab put together a history of Blackhawks’ deadline day deals this morning:
- Even before the Jalen Carter news this week, I preferred Will Anderson Jr. Luis likes the vibes he’s giving off this week in Indianapolis: