The Philadelphia Eagles just made Jalen Carter a whole lot richer, and the Arizona Cardinals will feel that ripple when the teams meet in the 2026 regular season.
Carter agreed to a four-year, $152 million contract extension that can climb to $160 million. If it reaches the top end, that would put him at a $40 million annual average. For a defensive lineman who has already been a Pro Bowler twice and a second-team All-Pro once in three NFL seasons, that’s the market speaking loud and clear.
For the Cardinals, the timing matters because they have their own young interior force in Walter Nolen. In limited action as a rookie, Nolen flashed the kind of dominance that gets people thinking bigger. Much bigger.
He is not eligible for an extension until 2028, so there’s no immediate contract crunch. But if he becomes what the Cardinals believe he can be, keeping him won’t come cheap. In two years, the top young defensive tackles are expected to be making more than $40 million per year.
That’s not a problem to solve today. It’s more of a marker on the horizon. Still, it’s hard not to notice when a player like Carter resets the ceiling at the position, especially with Nolen’s upside sitting right there in Arizona.
And if that future headache arrives because Nolen has turned into a dominant force, the Cardinals would probably take it. Their defense could use one. The last time one of their first-round defensive tackles truly hit was Eric Swann in the 90s.
In Other News...
Cardinals Fans Will Love How Mike LaFleur Is Changing Camp
Mike LaFleur is already putting his stamp on Cardinals camp in a way players and coaches can feel right away. The head coach has folded instant replay screens into the practice routine, using the big board at State Farm Stadium during early camp and smaller screens at the Tempe facility, a setup he said he had seen work before with the Rams.
For Arizona, the appeal is simple: coaches can correct mistakes on the spot, especially up front, and the whole operation moves faster once practice ends. LaFleur also made it clear he likes how the screens sharpen the teaching process, even if he could not resist a little jab about wanting even more display space at the teams practice sites. [Read more 🡒]
Jordan Burch Is Suddenly Carrying Real Breakout Buzz In Arizona
Jordan Burch arrived in the NFL with real pedigree after a productive college career and a third-round selection last year, and the Cardinals kept him on the field for all 17 games as a rookie. The production did not match the draft slot, but Arizona never seemed to view that first season as the final word on what the edge rusher could become.
Now, during training camp, the tone around Burch has shifted from patience to possibility. Coaches Nick Rallis and Mike LaFleur have both pointed to his work ethic and steady progress, with the staff encouraged by the way he is developing in multiple parts of his game. The bigger question is whether that buzz turns into the kind of second-year jump the Cardinals think is there, and whether Burch can start turning all that promise into the impact they have been waiting for. [Read more 🡒]
Former Cardinals Star DeAndre Hopkins Appears Headed For A Shocking Next Step
DeAndre Hopkins has spent the past few weeks sounding like a player trying to decide what comes next, and the answer may be moving closer to the sideline than the huddle. The former Cardinals receiver, now an unrestricted free agent, recently showed up at the start of Patriots training camp practices to explore coaching or scouting opportunities, a sign that his post-playing options are becoming more serious even as he keeps insisting he still has something left to offer on the field.
Hopkins has said he still believes he can play, describing himself more as a third-down specialist at this stage of his career, which is why the next step feels so unusual. For Arizona fans who remember the big 2020 trade that brought him in from Houston before the Cardinals eventually moved on from him, this is another twist in a career that has already taken plenty of sharp turns, and it now appears to be heading toward a place few would have expected. [Read more 🡒]