‘Won’t Happen Again’

PHILADELPHIA — Only six seconds of the NFL season had elapsed before the Eagles were encumbered with adversity.

By that point, the crowd had reached a fever pitch, fueled by Bill Conti’s “Gonna Fly Now,” an institutional staple that typically can be heard on the loudspeakers throughout Lincoln Financial Field ahead of opening kickoffs.

The joy that had swept through the stadium was swiftly replaced by disbelief.

Fullback and special teams ace Ben VanSumeren, less than 10 months removed from a knee injury that abruptly halted his 2024 season, engaged in a block before his right leg buckled. While the extent of the injury is still unknown, the gravity was evident, as VanSumeren threw his helmet in frustration while waiting for a cart to transport him to the locker room.

While that was transpiring, the defense took the field in anticipation of the game’s initial snap. But the temporary break in the action afforded enough time for an exchange between Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter.

Eagles DT Jalen Carter vowed to never get ejected again for spitting.

Replays show Prescott spitting in the direction of Carter; they also captured Carter walking up to Prescott in retaliation, launching a wad of spit that landed on Prescott’s jersey.

Before the crowd could piece together the ominous sequence, Carter was promptly disqualified. The 24-year-old defender, bearing a smirk, was then ushered to the locker room, his evening over before it started.

Immediately impacted by Carter’s absence, the defense surrendered a six-play, 53-yard scoring drive, capped by a 1-yard touchdown surge from Cowboys running back Javonte Williams. The series foreshadowed what would be a see-saw battle up until the break.

Carter’s actions also impacted a new-look secondary with moving pieces. Without an interior disruptor like Carter stationed in the teeth of the Eagles’ defense, Prescott was able to stand and deliver, capitalizing on backend deficiencies.

“It was a mistake that happened on my side,” Carter said after the game. “It just won’t happen again. I just feel bad for my teammates and the fans out there. I’m doing it for them. I’m doing it for my family, also, but the fans, they show the most love. You heard them out there today.

“Just not being able to finish the game, start the game, it just f——d me up. But we’re gonna get it better. It won’t happen again. I can make that promise.”

As for Prescott, the Cowboys signal-caller offered his own recount of the incident, setting the scene for what became the game’s most widely discussed storyline.

“I probably spit a thousand times throughout the game,” he said. “I mean especially game day, maybe even in general and something I guess I’m not proud of. But in that case, he was trolling, I guess you could say, trying to mess with [Cowboys RG] Tyler Booker.

“I was just looking at him. I was right here by the two linemen and I guess I needed to spit, and I wasn’t going to spit on my lineman and I just spit ahead. I would say he was back there and was in that sense and he goes, ‘Are you trying to spit on me?’ At that point, I mean I felt like he was insulting me.”

Prescott said he “damn sure” wasn’t trying to spit on Carter, adding that he was just defending his rookie teammate and that “it was more of a surprise than anything” when Carter spit at him and that he was happy the refs caught the moment and gave the Cowboys 15 penalty yards to start their series.

“Didn’t realize he was getting ejected,” Prescott added. “Unfortunate that he did. He is a hell of a player. It changed our plan and our blocking scheme, as I’ve told you before the week that we’re going to protect against him. So it helped in that manner. I don’t wish for anybody to get out of the game.”

Prescott said he’s “pretty sure” Carter knows that he wasn’t spitting on him and expressed some sympathy for Carter getting tossed.

“I mean I know how excited each and every one of us are right to kick off the season and the season opener, and hell of a player like that doesn’t even get a chance in the first play,” he said. “Unfortunate circumstances.”

The ejection had a direct impact on Carter’s position room, narrowing the active group to four and forcing others to unexpectedly undertake expanded roles.

For perspective, defensive tackles Moro Ojomo and Jordan Davis logged 55 and 53 snaps, respectively. For Ojomo, a promising third-year pro, it was the most snaps he’s played. And the snap total for Davis was the second-most he’s logged in a game.

At the break, Ojomo played 29 of 30 snaps (97%) and Davis 26 of 30 (87%). Both appeared to be emptying the proverbial tank.

The group also received inspired efforts from reserves Byron Young and Gabe Hall. Young, who contributed 22 snaps, teamed with linebacker Jihaad Campbell to force a fumble and sold out in an attempt to reel in a diving interception.

Each player, as a result of the Carter incident, was tasked with picking up the slack and rallied.

”Football’s a flexible game, and you never know what’s gonna happen,” Ojomo said. “Whatever happened with Jalen, we had to bounce back, win the game. Jalen is a leader in our room, and we ultimately missed him out there and want him back next week.”

But Carter committed an infraction that hardly coincides with the discipline, accountability and team-first mindset enforced by head coach Nick Sirianni, who when asked postgame was adamant about keeping his conversation with Carter private.

Sirianni instead highlighted the performances of the four interior linemen who delivered inspired showings, before delicately illustrating the balance between emotion and playing within the confines of the rules. Careful not to overshare, Sirianni also eventually circled back to Carter.

“I thought Jordan got some good pressures. Moro, I’ll have to watch the tape there, but I know he played stout in there. Gabe Hall came in and gave us some good reps,” he said. “But, we need Jalen Carter on the field and, like I said, we will keep everything in-house, but we have to get all these things corrected as a whole.

“As you guys know, I want them — you see how I coach with emotion, and I want them to play with emotion, and that’s what I kind of say all the time is you have to do it within the rules of the game. We need everybody out there to help us be successful.”

– Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is a Staff Reporter/Content Producer for InsideTheBirds.com