3 stats to know about Chicago Bears potential pick Jalen Carter

1. Jalen Carter is a great pass rusher, but an elite run stopper

Jalen Carter has few holes in his game. He has plenty of pass-rush upside, and no one is quite concerned about it. However, if you had to define a weakness, that would be it. At least compared to his run defense.

Per PFF, he is rated 13th in pass rush productivity and 15th in pass rush win rate. He was graded out as the fourth-best rusher in the NCAA, but when you factor in that he played fewer snaps than most of his peers, you could say that is just outside the top ten interior pass rushers in college. That is obviously still pretty good, but he was the best-run defender in the country.

He was number two in run-stop rate, and this time, the sample size actually went against him. Still, he also had an average depth of tackle at 0.8 yards. So, on average, he was making his plays within one yard of the line.

On the flip side, the other run stopped with a higher rate than Carter and had an average depth of tackle at 1.9 yards down the field. So, he was getting more stops, but a yard further down.

What is impressive about Carter is that he posted a 15.3% run stop, and a 0.8 average depth of tackle. Only one player had a run stop rate over 10% and maintained an average depth of tackle under one. That is Jamare Edwards from James Madison, and he was at an 11.3% run stop rate.

So, essentially, some defenders can consistently make tackles. Some defenders make fewer stops, but they are meaningful stops right at the line. Jalen Carter makes the most run stops, and every time he does it is for a smaller gain than any other lineman. He is the best of both worlds as a run defender.