The Jalen Carter contract saga in Philadelphia just took a significant turn. Jeffrey Simmons landed a three-year, $105.8 million extension from the Tennessee Titans, completely resetting the defensive tackle market and raising the price tag on one of the Eagles’ most important young players. Now the question isn’t whether Philadelphia should pay Carter. It’s how much more this is going to cost after Howie Roseman got beat to the punch.

Look, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: you have to pay Jalen Carter. When he’s not dealing with that shoulder injury, he is one of the best defensive tackles in the entire league. He’s one of the best young, up-and-coming players in the sport, and he has shown that time and time again. Sure, there are questions about maturity and developing into a better teammate. But the long-term potential here is undeniable. This guy can be a superstar. He can be a Hall of Famer. You don’t let that walk out the door.

Howie Roseman got beat to it, and now the price goes up

What surprises me is that Roseman didn’t get ahead of this. We all know how the Eagles’ general manager operates. He likes to set the precedent, to be the one resetting markets. He did it with Jordan Davis earlier this offseason, getting that $26 million-per-year deal locked in before the dominoes started falling. So the fact that Tennessee beat Philadelphia to a market-setting deal tells me something. Maybe the two sides are further apart than we’d like to think.

Albert Breer reported that the Eagles are hesitant to pay Carter, and that report adds another layer to this.

But here’s what I keep coming back to: the Eagles didn’t trade Carter for Maxx Crosby. They didn’t trade him for Myles Garrett. They didn’t want to throw him into those deals, which tells me they view him as one of their prized possessions. You don’t protect a guy like that unless you’re planning to keep him.

The numbers are getting wild

The Simmons deal completely shattered the previous benchmark set by Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones at $31.75 million per year. Simmons is a four-time Pro Bowler who had 11 sacks last season. He’s dominant. So now the question becomes: will Carter demand $35 million? $36 million? $37 million?

I was saying a couple weeks ago that I’d offer Carter around $30 million per year, and I’m sure his agent Drew Rosenhaus is fighting for every single dollar. But the Simmons deal changed the math. Are the Eagles willing to let Carter reset the market above that number? That’s where this gets tricky.

Philadelphia already committed $26 million per year to Jordan Davis. They still have to pay Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean down the road. Roseman has done an excellent job of prioritizing these young cornerstone players and allocating money the right way, but at some point, the bill comes due on all of them. Carter’s deal is the biggest one on the table right now, and Simmons just made it bigger.

The Fox Sports mock trade is nonsense

Fox Sports floated a mock trade scenario where Philadelphia would send Carter to the San Francisco 49ers for two future first-round picks and a future third-round pick. No. This is not happening. The Eagles are not trading Jalen Carter unless negotiations reach a point where the two sides are so far apart they simply cannot meet in the middle. I don’t see that happening.

Philadelphia values this guy too much. He’s one of their best long-term assets, and Roseman isn’t going to move him, especially at this point in the offseason when the leverage shifts. You don’t protect a player from blockbuster trade packages involving elite pass rushers just to flip him to San Francisco for draft capital.

The deal is going to get done. I believe that. But the Eagles are going to have to pay a premium now that the market moved without them. Roseman typically likes to be the one setting the terms, and this time he’s playing catch-up. Carter and Rosenhaus know it, Tennessee just handed them the leverage, and every day that passes without an extension probably means the final number ticks a little higher.