Former Washington Commanders wide receiver DeAndre Carter agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Chargers late Thursday evening.
The 28-year-old receiver and kick returner's deal with the Chargers is reportedly valued at $1.135 million and includes a $100K signing bonus and $100K in guarantees.
Carter returned 36 kickoffs for Washington in 2021 for 904 yards and one touchdown, averaging 25.1 yards per return (third-best in the NFL). Carter also caught 24 passes for 296 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for 89 yards on 10 carries, totaling 385 yards from scrimmage.
Carter's breakout moment came in Week 4 against the Falcons, when he returned a kickoff 101 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to give Washington a two-point lead. Washington went on to win the game, 34-30.
Carter had an especially productive stretch in the middle of the season in which he scored a touchdown in three consecutive games, against the Broncos, Buccaneers and Panthers, respectively.
While conceding it's no travesty by any stretch, Grant Paulsen wondered aloud on 106.7 The Fan why the Commanders decided against bringing Carter back. Especially considering that, in football terms, it would cost the Commanders next to nothing to do so.
"[He] did not get an amount of money, by the way, that makes me think he got priced out of staying in D.C.," Paulsen said. "It actually kind of makes me wonder, 'What's going on here?' When you're talking about losing a player — for around a million dollars — who was really, really good for you, I've got questions as to how you let that player get away."
"He had been taking meetings and talking to other teams," Paulsen continued. "And look, it's April 8 — I mean we are three weeks past the start of free agency. And so, at this point, it was pretty clear, if you wanted DeAndre Carter, you would have already re-signed him. I would just like to know what the Commanders didn't love.
"When you looked at the player and you watched the film at the end of the season, what did you see that didn't make you think 'this is a really easy decision to bring this guy back on the cheap'? It has been years since Washington had a return man who could make plays consistently on special teams, who could impact games positively."
