The future of Georgia standout and current NFL Draft prospect Jalen Carter appears to be in question after a warrant was issued for his arrest on Wednesday. However, it appears that he is still going through with the NFL Draft process.
Carter allegedly misled police about his whereabouts during a teammate’s fatal car crash back in January. An investigation into the incident led to an arrest warrant being issued to Carter for reckless driving and racing.
According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, Carter was booked on these charges and released from jail after posting a $4,000 bond on Wednesday night.
The latest on #Georgia DT Jalen Carter, who was booked on reckless driving and racing charges. He paid a $4,000 bond and was released at 11:49pm ET last night: https://t.co/hKt70wf0s9
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 2, 2023
Carter was at the NFL Draft Combine at the time of the arrest warrant being issued on Wednesday. Less than 24 hours later, he returned to the combine to finish his interviews, measurements, and other activities with NFL teams.
Source: Jalen Carter is back at the combine to finish his interviews, measurements and other activities. https://t.co/sJzMwG72og
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 2, 2023
The NFL world took notice of this update and offered their opinion on Carter going through with the combine despite all the controversy surrounding him.
https://twitter.com/JohnnyVenerable/status/1631310570862391297
Been an interesting 24 hours for Jalen Carter https://t.co/vfKY872N1o
— Frank Sulkowski WJCL (@TheBigGuyWJCL) March 2, 2023
in and out of jail in 15 minutes and back to the grind. scouts gotta love that mentality. football over everything. what character issues? https://t.co/ygobBwD6gy
— Jeremy (@JeromeyR0me) March 2, 2023
https://twitter.com/falcfans/status/1631310347490525190
— Sam Monson (@PFF_Sam) March 2, 2023
It is certainly a questionable decision to jump right back into interviews with NFL teams after this development emerged less than 24 hours ago.
Carter made it clear that he plans to return to Athens to ultimately clear his name of any wrongdoing in this incident.
“It is my intention to return to Athens to answer the misdemeanor charges against me and to make certain that the complete and accurate truth is presented,” Carter said in a statement about the incident.
Time will certainly tell how this incident affects the draft stock of Carter, but this certainly cannot be a good look for NFL teams that were previously interested in him.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.