Since the Cardinals acquired running back Michael Carter from the Jets on waiver last season, he has endeared himself to coaches, teammates and fans with his nimble, super-fast running style.

However, during the offseason, Monti Ossenfort made two moves at the running back position that essentially “wiped out” Michael Carter’s chances of making the Cardinals’ original 53-man roster. The two moves were signing RB/KR DeeJay Dallas to a 3-year, $8.25 million contract and selecting All-American RB Trey Benson from Florida St. with the No. 66 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

A tremendous irony is that Michael Carter did cartwheels when he heard the Cardinals had drafted Trey Benson because he and Benson are good training partners.

This preseason, Michael Carter carried the ball 9 times over 50 yards (5.6 Ø) and scored a touchdown. This reminded fans of his spectacular run against the Steelers: (click)

Michael Carter runs for 19 yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers (youtube.com)

Crowds of Cardinals fans insisted that Carter be included in the team.

Many of them thought Carter was a sure bet for the roster when Jonathan Gannon said the following after the team’s humiliating 38-12 loss to the Broncos:

So if Michael Carter was on the verge of being eliminated, why did the coaches not let him play in the third preseason game?

It is quite possible that the Cardinals did not want to risk an injury to Carter, as they had every intention of placing him on the transfer list.

Then why couldn’t the Cardinals at least get a 7th round draft pick for Michael Carter?

There were reasons for this worth $3.2 million.

Jess Root of CardsWire had the perfect assessment of Carter’s salary for 2024:

Cardinals RB Michael Carter to receive higher salary for 2024 – Yahoo Sports

As Jess suggested, Michael Carter’s chances of making the Cardinals’ initial 53-man roster at that $3.2 million salary were questionable at best.

Tough day for many NFL veterans:

Michael Carter was not the only Cardinals veteran to receive a call from the Turk:

And why Michael Carter was probably the underdog:

• Most teams don’t keep 5 RBs.
• RB3 and RB4 usually have to be ST aces, and those are Demercado and Dallas.
• The Cardinals held on to all the UFAs they signed during the offseason, DeeJay Dallas was one of them.
• All 4 of the Cardinals’ current running backs will be active on game day. Conner is the leader. Benson is the home run hitter. Demercado is the quarterback’s best blitz destroyer and a “rocked up” power back. And Dallas will be one of the kickoff returners and part-time punt returners. That means there’s no way the Cardinals can afford to keep Michael Carter active on game days. At least not early in the season.
• The days of having “alternative RBs” in the NFL who gobbled up snaps on third downs are numbered in recent years as coaches have emphasized pass protection instead.

Why Michael Carter could likely stay with the Cardinals:

All in all, Michael Carter seems to love this Cardinals team and he is loved by the coaches and his teammates. Therefore, Michael Carter’s days as a member of the Arizona Cardinals may not be over yet.

In fact, Michael Carter could be signed to the Cardinals’ practice squad today. That is, if he isn’t claimed off waivers. But for the same reason the Cardinals couldn’t find trade partners for Carter, would any team be willing to take on his $3.2 million salary, which would be fully guaranteed starting Week 1?

Another possibility would be for Michael Carter to wait until Week 2 to negotiate a new contract with the Cardinals or another team. In the Cardinals’ case, it could be very tempting to have Michael Carter in the bullpen as a valuable backup when needed if a roster spot opens up for some reason. There’s little doubt that Michael Carter would be active on game day if one of the team’s top three RBs is out for a game, as he brings more potential and versatility to the running game than DeeJay Dallas, who was kept primarily for special teams.

Given the Cardinals’ dedication to the running game and their impressive performance on the ground, as long as Michael Carter patiently waits his turn, you can bet he will take full advantage of the opportunities he gets with the Cardinals. He will become an unrestricted free agent in 2025.

Who knows? If James Conner moves on as a free agent next year, the Cardinals could re-sign Michael Carter and keep him with his buddies Trey Benson and Emari Demercado. In some ways, Benson, Carter and Demercado complement each other well in their own ways.