Eagles exercise Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith’s fifth-year options, lose key front office member to Atlanta
Carter’s salary on the fifth-year option will be more than $27 million in 2027, while Smith’s will be around $13.7 million.
The Eagles did the expected Monday afternoon, picking up the 2027 fifth-year options for their 2023 first-round picks.
Both Jalen Carter, the ninth pick in 2023, and Nolan Smith, the 30th pick, are now under contract for the 2027 season, the team announced Monday.
The Eagles faced a May 1 deadline to make the paper moves.
Carter’s salary on the fifth-year option will be more than $27 million in 2027, while Smith’s will be around $13.7 million. The Eagles could sign either to a contract extension and lessen the salary-cap blow for the 2027 season, similar to what they did earlier this offseason with 2022 first-round pick Jordan Davis.
Carter seems the more likely of the pair to be extended first, and the Eagles may work to try to get a deal done during this offseason.
Both Georgia defenders have been a big part of the Eagles’ success and were big factors on a defensive front that dominated its way to a Super Bowl in the 2024 season. But both were hampered by injuries in 2025, Carter by injuries to both shoulders and Smith after aggravating a triceps injury that he had surgery on after the Super Bowl.
» READ MORE: Eagles roundtable: What are the team’s biggest questions coming out of the draft?
Eagles lose cap expert to Falcons
Bryce Johnston, who spent 10 years with the Eagles and had a major role in helping Howie Roseman navigate the salary cap, is leaving the team to take on a front office role with the Atlanta Falcons.
“I feel very fortunate to have been able to work closely with and learn from Howie and, now, be in a position to take those insights with me as I move forward,” Johnston said in a statement. “The organization is filled with first-class people who perform their jobs at an extremely high level, and I am very proud of everything that we accomplished together.”
Johnston’s exit comes two years after Jake Rosenberg, the Eagles’ longtime salary cap executive, left the team.
