X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Value Picks
Compare Any Players
News and Alerts

NFL Rookie Spotlight - Michael Carter

The New York Jets added running back depth in the 2021 NFL Draft when they selected RB Michael Carter. Jason Katz looks at Carter's dynasty value to see if he is a receiver worth targeting in dynasty leagues.

The Jets were one of a number of teams pegged to take a day two running back that either waited until day three or did not take one altogether. With their first pick in the fourth round, the Jets selected North Carolina running back Michael Carter.

When evaluating prospects' likelihood of NFL success, we care about three things:

1. College performance
2. Athletic measurables
3. Draft capital

 

College Performance

Although he played four years in college, Carter broke out as a true freshman. Over the course of his college career, he averaged 8.0 yards per carry and posted a respectable 8.4% college target share. In 2020, he was 14th in the nation with 4.47 yards after contact per carry.

When analyzing a prospect's ceiling, we look at his best college season, which for Carter, was his senior season where he recorded 1,245 yards and 11 touches on 156 carries. He did this despite sharing a backfield with a second-round pick, Javonte Williams. Given the caliber of his college teammate, Carter's production is more impressive. There is nothing in his collegiate profile that suggests he can't produce at the NFL level.

 

Athletic Measurables

At 5'8, 201 lbs, Carter does not have the physical profile of a between-the-tackles runner or a three-down workhorse. He's not particularly fast, running just a 4.59 adjusted 40-time, but he's extremely shifty, posting a 98th percentile agility score. Carter is the type of guy you want to get in space and let him make defenders miss.

It may feel like a lazy comparison, but Carter really does remind me a bit of fellow Carolina alum Giovani Bernard. Carter would do well to have a career as good as Bernard's.

 

Rookie Season Outlook

The Jets return La'Mical Perine, who was a fourth-round pick last season, and Ty Johnson, who is a former sixth-round pick. Perine had a handful of games as the primary back, but couldn't manage to surpass 40 yards rushing in any of them, including a game where he saw a 70% snap share. Johnson, on the other hand, smashed in his one game as the feature back, posting RB1 numbers with 104 yards on 22 carries with a touchdown.

From a draft capital perspective, though, Carter is already ahead of both of them. The Jets signed 28-year-old Tevin Coleman, but Coleman has flopped every time he's been given a feature role and has struggled to stay on the field throughout his career.

The Jets upgraded at quarterback and head coach, jettisoning Sam Darnold and Adam Gase in favor of Zach Wilson and Robert Saleh, and they've now dedicated consecutive first-round picks to building their offensive line. All things considered, this is not a bad landing spot for Carter. Day three picks rarely make any sort of headway in the NFL, but Carter has as good of a shot as anyone to buck that trend.

 

Long-Term Outlook

Carter's long-term outlook depends heavily on how his new coach views him. Carter's fantasy ceiling will always be no higher than RB2 because of his size, but that would be a massive success if he could pull that off. Coleman will most likely be the starter with either Perine or Johnson as the change of pace back, but Carter could work his way into that role either via performance or injury.

There's a decent chance that once Carter gets an opportunity, he seizes it and carves out a 10-12 touch-a-game role. That's nothing to write home about, but it's nothing to scoff at either, especially for a fourth-round pick.



Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy football app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, rankings, starts/sits & more. All free!

More NFL Rookie Profiles




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Tyquan Thornton

Reps With First-Team Offense, Impressing Chiefs in Training Camp
Jacory Croskey-Merritt

Earns Praise from Dan Quinn
Travis Homer

Suffers Calf Injury
Jordan Love

Matthew Golden Has Earned Jordan Love's Trust
Chris Buescher

Scores Another Top-5 Run At Watkins Glen
Ryan Preece

Earns Stage Points, but Loses Ground to the Playoffs At Watkins Glen
William Byron

Keeps the Regular Season Points Lead After Watkins Glen
Chase Briscoe

Continues His Hot Streak With A Top-5 Finish At Watkins Glen
Chase Elliott

Top-20 Streak Ends at Watkins Glen After Pit Struggles
Jeff Wilson Jr.

Reuniting With 49ers
Alexander Mattison

"Doing Well" After Early Exit on Sunday
NFL

Landon Dickerson Carted Off Field With Apparent Leg Injury
NFL

Jermaine Johnson Activated From PUP List
Alec Pierce

Exits Practice on Sunday
Daniel Jones

Starting Second Preseason Game
Jaylen Waddle

Dealing with an Injury
Kyle Monangai

Looks Good Against Dolphins
Luther Burden III

Shows Promise Against Dolphins
Zach Wilson

Leads Two Touchdown Drives in Preseason Action
Colston Loveland

Has One Catch Against Dolphins
Tyson Bagent

Up-and-Down Against Dolphins
Tahj Washington

Leads Dolphins in Receiving on Sunday
Luther Burden III

Records Two Catches in First Preseason Game
Ollie Gordon II

Leads Dolphins in Rushing on Sunday
NFL

Terrell Edmunds Signs with Raiders
AJ Barner

Impressing in Training Camp Practices
Josh Giddey

Bulls Still Apart In Contract Negotiations
Jeremy Sochan

Expected To Miss EuroBasket With Calf Injury
Trae Young

'Resigned' To Idea Of No Extension This Offseason
Hunter Greene

Expected to Return Wednesday
Bobby Witt Jr.

Dealing With Stiff Back
Shane Van Gisbergen

Shane van Gisbergen the Heavy Favorite to Win at Watkins Glen
Kyle Larson

Is Kyle Larson a Must-Play in DFS at Watkins Glen?
Chase Elliott

an Easy Pick to Make in DFS at Watkins Glen
Chris Buescher

Trying to Repeat at Watkins Glen
Tyler Reddick

Struggling to Find Speed at Watkins Glen
Michael McDowell

a Legitimate Threat at Watkins Glen
Joey Logano

Has Been Solid at Watkins Glen in Next Gen Car
Todd Gilliland

Has Upside at Watkins Glen
Ricky Stenhouse Jr

. has Favorable Watkins Glen Record
Justin Haley

Fastest in Practice at Watkins Glen
Riley Herbst

Could Be A Sneaky DFS Play
Connor Zilisch

Withdraws Cup Series Entry from Watkins Glen After Injury
Christopher Bell

Should not be Underestimated this Week at Watkins Glen
Chase Briscoe

May Remain Hot at Watkins Glen
Ty Gibbs

Is Ty Gibbs Worth Rostering At Watkins Glen This Week For DFS?
Ross Chastain

Should DFS Managers Roster Ross Chastain at Watkins Glen?
Julio Rodríguez

Julio Rodriguez Homers Twice in Win
New York Knicks

Ben Simmons Drawing Interest from Knicks, Celtics
Trea Turner

Homers, Drives in Five in Productive Night
Haywood Highsmith

Undergoes Successful Knee Surgery
NHL

Jakub Vrana Signs Two-Year Deal in Sweden
COL

Avalanche Bring Back Joel Kiviranta on One-Year Deal
Matthew Tkachuk

Could Miss 2-3 Months with Surgery
Edward Cabrera

Punches Out 11 in Victory
Chase Burns

Superb in 10-Strikeout Performance
Mason McTavish

Several Teams Keeping Tabs on Mason McTavish
LA

Kyle Clifford Hangs Up Skates
Elias Pettersson

Out for "Revenge" in 2025-26
Roman Dolidze

Looks To Extend His Win Streak
Semyon Varlamov

to Start Skating Next Week
Anthony Hernandez

Set For UFC Vegas 109 Main Event
VAN

Vitali Kravtsov Returns to Canucks
Steve Erceg

In Dire Need Of Victory
Iasmin Lucindo

Aims To Bounce Back
Angela Hill

Set For A Main-Card Bout
Christian Rodriguez

A Favorite At UFC Vegas 109
Andre Fili

Set For His 24th UFC Fight
Miles Johns

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Jean Matsumoto

Looks To Bounce Back
Christian Leroy Duncan

Looks To Win Back-To-Back Fights
Eryk Anders

Set To Open Up UFC Vegas 109 Main Card
Drake Baldwin

Homers Twice, Drives in Five
Josh Naylor

Day-to-Day With Shoulder Soreness
Michael King

to Return Saturday
Payton Pritchard

Eager to Continue Improving
Austin Reaves

Expected to Receive Massive Pay Raise with Next Contract
Jayson Tatum

Out of Walking Boot
San Antonio Spurs

Spurs Bring in Micah Potter for Training Camp
Harrison Ingram

Re-Signs with Spurs
Zack Wheeler

Pushed Back to Sunday With Shoulder Stiffness
Roman Anthony

Agrees to Eight-Year Extension
NBA

Richaun Holmes Moves to Panathinaikos on Two-Year Deal
Maverick McNealy

Attempts to Bounce Back at Memphis
Bennedict Mathurin

to Become Regular Starter for Pacers
Darius Garland

Cavaliers Not Rushing Darius Garland Back
Kurt Kitayama

Could Get Hot at Memphis
PGA

Sungjae Im a Volatile Risk at FedEx St. Jude
Riley Minix

Signs New Two-Way Deal with Spurs
Harry Hall

Playing Well as Playoffs Approach
Chris Boucher

Signs One-Year, $3.3 Million Deal with Celtics
PGA

Chris Gotterup on Impressive Run Heading to Memphis
Georges Niang

Returns to Utah
Harris English

Ready for the Playoffs
Bud Cauley

Trying to Reverse Course at Memphis
Daniel Berger

Hoping to Contend at FedEx St. Jude
Luke Keaschall

Launches First Career Home Run
Scottie Scheffler

Continues Dominance Ahead of TPC Southwind
Collin Morikawa

Eyes Major Bounce Back at TPC Southwind
Michael Kim

Looking to Find Rhythm at TPC Southwind
PGA

Victor Hovland Eyeing Another Strong Finish at TPC Southwind
Ben Griffin

Brings High-Upside Value to TPC Southwind
Shea Langeliers

Has Three-Homer Evening Tuesday
Matt Fitzpatrick

Staying Red-Hot Entering TPC Southwind
Patrick Cantlay

Eyeing Another Strong Finish at TPC Southwind
Ludvig Aberg

Needs a Complete Week at TPC Southwind
Roman Anthony

to Return on Wednesday
Gleyber Torres

Scratched from Tuesday's Lineup
DAL

Anton Khudobin Announces Retirement
Miro Heiskanen

Back at 100 Percent Ahead of New Season
Matthew Tkachuk

Expected to Miss Start of Season
Nick Lodolo

Reds Place Nick Lodolo on Injured List With Finger Blister
NHL

Jimmy Vesey Moves Abroad
ANA

Sam Colangelo Signs Two-Year Extension
NYI

Matthew Schaefer Signs Entry-Level Contract with Islanders
NBA

Brandon Boston Jr. Inks Deal with Fenerbahce
NBA

Jeff Dowtin Jr. Joins Six-Time EuroLeague Champions
NBA

Lonnie Walker IV Agrees to Three-Year Contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv
Neemias Queta

Working Back From Knee Surgery
Johnny Juzang

Links Up with Timberwolves
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF