Michael

Carter

Carter will stay in the Arizona organization even after being waived by the team Tuesday during final cuts. The 25-year-old isn’t likely to see many — if any — touches for Arizona to begin the year.

Carter somehow emerged as the Cardinals’ RB2 down the stretch last season, but his services were no longer needed following rookie Trey Benson’s strong summer. Carter could end up back on the practice squad.

The eight touches were a new season high for the ex-Jet, who saw some extra run as James Conner briefly dealt with injury. That included Carter’s touchdown grab in the third quarter. He won’t be in the Week 18 DFS mix.

Carter was not targeted in the passing game, though he was again operating as James Conner’s third-down complement even before Emari Demercado departed with a neck injury. With Arizona now headed on bye and returning against the 49ers in Week 15, Carter isn’t much of a stash for the fantasy playoffs.

This was Carter’s first game since being claimed off waivers by the Cardinals on November 15th. His 27 snaps were only three fewer than James Conner’s 30, while his 19 routes run led the Cardinals’ backfield. In total, Carter managed 34 yards from scrimmage on eight touches. Undrafted rookie free agent Emari Demercado played on just 14 snaps and ran only six routes, a trend that will likely continue as long as Conner and Carter are both healthy. Interestingly, Demercado and Carter split third-down snaps, while Conner worked exclusively on early downs. Conner continues to be the Cardinals’ lead back, but Carter’s usage in his first game with the team should be concerning for Conner managers with the fantasy playoffs looming. Carter is worth an add-and-stash in deeper leagues where managers can afford to do so.

Well, that didn’t take long. Carter was just cut by the Jets on Tuesday and will now be a member of the Cardinals. In his three-year career, Carter has 269 carries for 1,079 yards (4.8 yards per carry); however, he has proven to be a strong receiving back. It’s possible that the Cardinals could use him as a pass-catching complement to James Conner, taking snaps away from Keaontay Ingram and Emari Demercado.

In a surprise move, the Jets are letting go of their once trusted back. Used sparingly as a third-down back this season, the Jets will now roll with Breece Hall and Dalvin Cook. Perhaps this is a sign that Israel Abanikanda (a fifth round rookie) will get a look at some point. As for Carter, there is surely a team that’ll utilize his skill set.

Carter did not receive a carry but returned modest fantasy value by catching six balls on the team’s final possession of the game, surely leaving Breece Hall’s fantasy managers with a case of “what could have been” in the process. Carter can safely remain on the waiver wire for fantasy purposes.

After seeing four touches in Week 5, Carter managed just one touch in Week 6. The third-year back is nothing more than a handcuff to Breece Hall, as it’s possible he’s the preferred backup behind Dalvin Cook. Neither Carter nor Cook has standalone value at this point, as Hall’s role has increased drastically over the last two weeks.

What was interesting was that that Carter was the second running back behind Breece Hall to enter the game, over Dalvin Cook. He did not however, have more touches than Cook, but it’s clear they want to use Carter as well. He’s not worth a pickup unless one of Cook or Hall go down with injury.