Alexander Rhys Carter (born October 19, 1994) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He played

in college football at Stanford.

High school career

Carter attended

Briar Woods High School Briar Woods High School is a public secondary school located in Ashburn, an unincorporated area in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States, and is part of Loudoun County Public Schools. The school serves students who live in the Broadlands, Bra ...

in Ashburn, Virginia, where he recorded over 1,000 all-purpose yards and 50 tackles with five interceptions (one returned for touchdown) as a senior. He helped lead his team to a 12–1 record and a win in the state championship game. He was named Virginia's 2011 Gatorade Player of the Year, and was selected to play in the 2012 U.S. Army All-American Bowl in

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

. Carter also lettered in

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

at Briar Woods, competing during his junior year running the 100 meters, 4x100 and the long jump (6.62m or 21-7). He competed at the state meets and his fastest time in the 100-meter dash was 10.9 seconds. Considered a four-star recruit by

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

, Carter was ranked as the third-best

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly dif ...

prospect of his class, and drew comparisons to

Tyvon Branch Tyvon A. Branch (born December 11, 1986) is a former American football safety. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fourth round (100th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft and has also played for the Kansas City Chiefs and Arizona Cardinals ...

. On April 5, 2011, he accepted a scholarship offer and announced his commitment to Stanford.

College career

As a true freshman in 2012, Carter played in all 14 games with starts in the last 8 games at

. He recorded 46 tackles, including three tackles for loss, and led his team with three forced fumbles. In 2013, he started all 13 games, recording 59 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, one interception, team-high seven pass breakups. In 2014, he started all 13 games, recording 41 tackles with one interception and a team leading nine pass breakups. On December 31, 2014, he announced he would forgo his remaining eligibility and enter the 2015 NFL Draft.

Professional career

Detroit Lions

Carter was drafted 80th overall by the Detroit Lions in the 2015 NFL Draft. The Lions traded up with the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...

for the pick, giving away their own third-round pick (88th overall, Vikings picked

Danielle Hunter Danielle Hunter ( ; born October 29, 1994) is a Jamaican-born American football outside linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU. He was drafted in the third round, 88th ove ...

) and their fifth-round pick (143rd overall, Vikings picked

MyCole Pruitt MyCole Pruitt (born March 24, 1992) is an American football tight end for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Southern Illinois Salukis football, Southern Illinois, where he was a two-time fi ...

). On September 3, 2016, Carter was waived by the Lions and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on December 24, 2016. Carter was converted to safety during the 2017 offseason. He was waived by the Lions on September 2, 2017.

New England Patriots

On October 9, 2017, Carter was signed to the New England Patriots' practice squad, but was released three days later.

Seattle Seahawks

On November 14, 2017, Carter was signed to the Seattle Seahawks' practice squad. He was released on November 21, 2017.

Chicago Bears

On November 27, 2017, Carter was signed to the Chicago Bears' practice squad. He was released on December 12, 2017.

Seattle Seahawks (second stint)

On December 19, 2017, Carter was signed to the Seahawks' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Seahawks on January 2, 2018. He was waived on August 2, 2018.

Carolina Panthers

On August 12, 2018, Carter signed with the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

. He was waived on August 31, 2018.

Washington Redskins

On December 18, 2018, Carter was signed to the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on December 27, 2018. He was waived on April 30, 2019.

Personal life

Has two children, Mikah Alexander Carter (born February 15, 2018) with ex-wife Ariana Alston, and Akani Christian Carter (born October 28, 2021) with former girlfriend Akasha Marie. Carter's father, Tom, was a first-round draft pick in the

1993 NFL Draft The 1993 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 25–26, 1993, at the Marriot Ma ...

by the

References

External links

Stanford Cardinal bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Alex 1994 births Living people American football cornerbacks Stanford Cardinal football players Sportspeople from Fairfax, Virginia Players of American football from Fairfax County, Virginia Detroit Lions players New England Patriots players Seattle Seahawks players Chicago Bears players Carolina Panthers players Washington Redskins players Sportspeople from Ashburn, Virginia