Nolan Carroll bet on himself after a broken leg cut his 2015 season short.
According to NJ.com’s Mark Eckel, the former Maryland cornerback has begun contract talks with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Carroll started all 15 games for the Eagles and played 89 percent of the snaps on defense. He recorded 51 tackles, defended 11 passes, and had one interception.
“They’re starting,” Carroll told Eckel on Wednesday. “I have a new agent so we’ll see how it goes.”
The former Terrapin defensive back started 11 games for the Eagles in 2015. Carroll was playing well prior to the injury and it forced the Eagles to roll with Byron Maxwell and Eric Rowe as their starting cornerbacks.
Both Maxwell and Rowe were let go this past offseason, so it speaks to how highly the organization regards Carroll.
After all, his 51 tackles are the third-most he’s recorded during his seven-year NFL career. He had 57 in his 11 games last season and 53 for the Miami Dolphins in 2012.
Carroll is coming off his most productive game of the season.
In last Thursday’s 24-19 win over the New York Giants, the former Terp tallied a season-high six tackles and two defended passes. In the fourth quarter, Carroll knocked an Eli Manning pass away from Sterling Shepard in the fourth quarter that helped dispel any chance of a Giant comeback.
Carroll has been a very productive corner over his NFL career. He was originally drafted by the Dolphins in the fifth round (No. 145 overall) of the 2010 NFL Draft.
He only played in two games as a senior during the 2009 season and still managed to get drafted.