Philadelphia Eagles defensive lineman Jalen Carter, a former Georgia player, was ejected from the NFL's season-opener Thursday night after spitting toward Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott before the first offensive snap.
Prescott said after the game that Carter was "trolling, I guess you could say -- trying to mess with" Cowboys rookie right guard Tyler Booker, a first-round pick earlier this year from Alabama, as medical staff attended to an Eagles player injured on the opening kickoff.
Prescott spit away from the Cowboys' offensive huddle, which led Carter to confront the Cowboys quarterback and spit toward him, resulting in an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and ejection.
"I'm wondering why you're trying to mess with the rookie," Prescott said he told Carter.
Carter did not elaborate on the nature of his "trolling" of Booker in his postgame interview.
Before the game, Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer spoke about the looming battle between Booker and Carter.
"He's excited about the option to go play football," Schottenheimer said of Booker. "He's played against great players. … [and] Jalen's going to win some battles, Book's going to win some battles, and that's football, man. And if you can't get excited about that going into a matchup in a game, hey, man, and in the blocking game, how cool is that?
"Book is ready for the challenge, and it'll be a fun one to watch."
Booker and Carter, who was a first-round pick in 2023, never played against each other in college. Carter came off the bench in three career games against Alabama in 2020, the 2021 SEC championship game and the 2021 College Football Playoff national championship game.
Alabama and Georgia will meet this season in Athens on Sept. 27.