Eagles Trade for CB Michael Carter II: What Does It Mean?
Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman simply can’t stop making deals. Despite the Eagles currently enjoying a much-needed bye week, Roseman is still hard at work.
The Eagles officially announced a trade with the New York Jets on Wednesday. Philadelphia traded wide receiver John Metchie III and a 2027 sixth-round pick to New York in exchange for cornerback Michael Carter II and a 2027 seventh-round pick.
Carter, 26, signed a three-year contract extension with the Jets in 2024. Now Carter is in Philadelphia, as he is reunited with Eagles senior personnel director and advisor to the general manager Joe Douglas.
Douglas was the general manager of the Jets when New York selected Carter in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. He was also still running the show in New York when the Jets signed him to a three-year contract extension. Roseman likely leaned on Douglas for added insight ahead of making this move.
While many expected the Eagles to trade for an outside cornerback, Carter has primarily played in the slot throughout his NFL career. Carter has played 2,212 snaps in the slot, compared to just 46 snaps at outside cornerback.
Does Carter’s Arrival Push DeJean Outside?
Therefore, it’s fair to wonder how he’ll fit in Philadelphia’s secondary moving forward. Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio clearly values what Cooper DeJean brings in the slot, yet he has also mentioned that the team has talked about moving DeJean to the outside.
Prior to acquiring Carter, Philadelphia didn’t have an adequate replacement at slot cornerback to even entertain that idea. Yet following Carter’s arrival, it’s going to be interesting to see how he is utilized in 2025 and beyond.
During DeJean’s rookie season, he was strictly a slot cornerback, as he played 773 snaps in the slot and just eight snaps at outside cornerback. Yet in year two, Fangio has utilized DeJean as Philadelphia’s second outside cornerback in base defense.
20.1% of DeJean’s snaps in 2025 have been at outside cornerback, according to Pro Football Focus. If Fangio does want to move DeJean to outside cornerback full-time, it wouldn’t be something that the second-year cornerback hasn’t already done.
Carter Adds Much-Needed Optionality
My guess is that Fangio would ideally like to still utilize DeJean in the slot at times. Given DeJean’s size, athleticism and physicality, he brings unique traits into the slot that have unlocked several layers of Philadelphia’s defense.
While we could see DeJean play more on the outside moving forward, it would be a mistake to completely remove him from the slot. Following the trade for Carter, Philadelphia’s secondary has more options to utilize in their nickel and dime defensive looks.
If Fangio wants to deploy a more traditional nickel defense with a smaller, faster slot cornerback, Carter can do exactly that. Despite his smaller stature, Carter also brings the physicality and willingness against the run that DeJean does.
This would allow the Eagles to keep Quinyon Mitchell on one side, DeJean on the other and Carter in the slot in their nickel defense. This potential look would especially be valuable against teams that might not deploy their top targets in the slot in 11 personnel.
Yet if there is a team that uses a bigger player or top target in the slot, that’s when DeJean can slide back inside. Then the Eagles can bring in Adoree’ Jackson, Jakorian Bennett or Kelee Ringo as the other outside cornerback opposite of Mitchell.
Another area where Carter can help is when the Eagles utilize their dime defense. While Fangio has only used his dime defense on 12 snaps this season, Carter being the sixth defensive back is a significant upgrade over the previous options.
Back to the Base-ics?
The Eagles have primarily played a ton of nickel defense since Fangio’s arrival. Yet could that change moving forward with Philadelphia’s linebacker trio of Zack Baun, Jihaad Campbell and Nakobe Dean being fully healthy? Possibly.
That’s one final aspect of this deal for Carter that might be being overlooked…or maybe I’m just overthinking this entire thing? If the Eagles are going to play more base defense, that would obviously force DeJean to be on the field more at outside cornerback.
Therefore, if DeJean is now primarily playing outside cornerback, would Fangio want to move him back inside in their nickel defense? It might make more sense to just keep him outside and bring in Carter as the slot cornerback instead of relying on Jackson, Bennett or Ringo at outside cornerback.
Regardless of where Carter plays or how he’ll be utilized, it’s clear that his arrival gives the Eagles plenty of options moving forward. Now it’s up to Fangio to put all of the puzzle pieces together in the City of Brotherly Love.