Nathan Carter Shines After Accident: “Football Game”
After a week marked by an incident in which he was involved and which caused an injury that ended a game, Atlanta Falcons rookie running back Nathan Carter expressed that knowing that the Lions’ Morice Norris was doing better gave him the confidence to go out on the field and play without reservations. The result was an outstanding performance. Carter accumulated 63 yards on nine carries, including a 43-yard touchdown run, in his team’s 23-20 preseason loss against the Tennessee Titans at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. When Carter achieved the big play, his teammates and fellow running backs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier celebrated enthusiastically from the bench. The atmosphere was considerably different on August 8th, in the Falcons’ first preseason game against the Detroit Lions. In the last quarter, Carter tried to get past the cornerback, but his knee hit Norris’s helmet. Norris remained on the field for about 20 minutes while receiving medical attention. Finally, an ambulance entered the field and transported Norris to a local hospital. Falcons coach Raheem Morris and Lions coach Dan Campbell agreed to suspend the game, and both teams gathered on the field for a prayer. Norris was moving and talking that night in the hospital and rejoined the Lions earlier this week. He is in concussion protocol, but Campbell reported that, overall, “he’s doing well”. Carter revealed that he communicated with Norris via a direct message on Instagram earlier in the week to find out how he was and wish him the best. Carter commented that Norris was “very upbeat” when they spoke.Morris was with Carter immediately after last week’s play, with a hand on Carter’s shoulder while he was on his knees. Morris said the Falcons are “very proud” to have Carter on the team. Carter, a former Michigan State running back, was an undrafted free agent, but has intriguing measurements (runs the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds) and has performed well in camp, which could earn him a spot on the team.“He’s doing well and that encourages me a lot,” Carter said Friday night after the game. “I think the most important thing was the fact that he was doing well and that he was doing well, and also being able to understand that it was a football play and that at the end of the day, my performance doesn’t depend on me trying to act for others, but on doing it for the Lord. So, I really focused on my faith and on helping that be my peace today.”
Nathan Carter
In his pro day, Carter demonstrated a 40-inch vertical jump, which would have been the second highest among running backs at the combine. His 23-rep bench press would have been the first, and his 10-foot, 8-inch long jump would have been fifth. Carter, 23, is competing with Carlos Washington Jr., Elijah Dotson, and Jashaun Corbin for the third running back spot for the Falcons and a place on the 53-man roster. Washington was the starter, but is currently dealing with a hamstring injury. Carter’s performance on Friday night was the best of any running back at Falcons camp not named Robinson or Allgeier so far. “It’s huge,” Carter said. “Not just for me, but really for the whole running back group, to be able to put something like that on video… When I scored that touchdown, the first people I saw were [Robinson and Allgeier] celebrating for me. And that’s huge because I admire those guys a lot.”“He plays with a ferocious running style,” Morris said. “He’s hard to bring down. He showed that a couple of times tonight.”
Raheem Morris
