Jets rookie running back Michael Carter tackles some Q&A with Post columnist Steve Serby.
Q: Why are players from Navarre, Fla., are so tough?
A: The way we were trained in high school, the way we were brought up. There’s no such thing as can’t — you can’t do something. Through the coaching staff we know that toughness is a very important part of the game.
Q: What is your definition of toughness?
A: Like, if there was a difference between being hurt and having a real injury, and knowing your limits and pushing those limits at all times. Even if something doesn’t go your way, that doesn’t mean the game’s over or anything like that, the game’s not over ’til that last whistle blows.
Q: What’s the most pain you ever played in?
A: I think it’s more like an emotional pain. My grandma [Daisy] had died, and I played that night. It was hard to play that game, but I ended up having a good game.
Q: This was in high school?
A: Yeah, I was a junior in high school.
Q: Tell me why she meant so much to you.
A: I got two brothers, she was our biggest supporter. She used to call a lot of time and give us a lot of love and make sure that she was there for her son’s kids. She meant everything to us, and it was really sad to have her go through what she did. She fought for a long time … she had cancer. She went through remission and then she died in remission, actually. We thought she had kind of cleared cancer completely, but really thankful that we got to spend a lot of time with her. After the high school games, if we play on Friday, we would drive into South Carolina every Saturday and Sunday, see her, and then go back to Florida on Sunday night, and then be real tired on Monday, but we got through it. We did it every weekend until she passed away.
Q: The game you almost didn’t play, tell me about that morning.
A: We played Dothan, Alabama, that night, and I guess I was with my dad, I kind of went into shock. I wasn’t like crying necessarily, until I saw my little brother crying. My head coach, Jay Walls, he asked me, “Do you want to play? You don’t have to.” Me and my brother and my dad kind of came to the conclusion that she would have wanted us to play, and she wouldn’t want to get in the way of something like that. And obviously it’s not her getting in the way, obviously not, but deep down in her heart, she would have wanted us to go out there and play and get our mind off and have fun doing it. I kind of had an out-of-body experience a little bit, but I just felt her … my guardian angel in a way. I lost my grandma in Week 1 of the season, and I ended up losing the rest of my season to a PCL injury in the third week of the season. I had like 150 yards at halftime, and then I got hurt. She was covering me, and I’m thankful I got hurt because it put me through some more adversity that made me who I am today.
Q: What is your mentality on the field?
A: I’m very confident as it is. I feel like when I’m on the field is when I feel the most comfortable and the most safe and the place that I really feel I can be myself. … It’s not an alter ego, but it’s definitely an overwhelming sense of confidence. In my own head, I feel like I’m the best player on the field, and I feel like we all should, right? I feel like that’s not uncommon. But I feel like I am the best player on the field. I just feel like I can make an impact and help my team win at all times.
Q: Where does that confidence come from?
A: I think it’s something I was just born with, to be honest. I think my parents have always preached, if you’re gonna do something, make sure you finish, and also be great in doing so. You might as well try to be the best if you’re gonna do something so I do credit that to my parents.
Q: What drives you?
A: My family, and my passion for the game. I pray the Lord helps me keep that passion for as long as I play. You can ask any one of my teammates: I tell all my teammates I love ’em and I appreciate ’em at all times because this game, it’s like nothing that you can do alone. Getting to know your teammates is a super important thing, and I just feel like the more I get to know my teammates, the harder I can play for ’em, so they become a part of my family.
Q: Which defensive player in the open field in NFL history would you want to test your skills against?
A: Ed Reed, probably. I think a big part of what makes a running back really great is being able to win against an unblocked defender. Ed Reed probably is the greatest safety ever.
Q: If you could pick the brain of any running back in NFL history, who would it be?
A: I’d have to pick three, ’cause I can’t just do one: Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders, LaDainian Tomlinson.
Q: What did you love about Emmitt Smith?
A: For one, the fact that he was able to play as long as he did, not miss a lot of games, not fumble a lot. His availability, and his not necessarily being the fastest guy on the field, but his ability to break a long run.
Q: Barry Sanders?
A: Barry Sanders is probably the most explosive player to ever play the game. I would just love to get some tips from him and just pick his brain about making people miss, ’cause he’s undisputedly the best player of all time at making people miss. I’m sure if he played a little bit longer, he probably would have the rushing record, but that’s up for debate, that’s another topic. And then LaDainian Tomlinson, he was like one of the first — along with Marshall Faulk too, I would love to talk to talk to him too — those two were some of the like first complete backs that paved the way for guys like Alvin Kamara and Christian McCaffrey. Also with Thurman Thomas, too, but … I’m showing off a little bit. I love football, man, I really do, so I do know a lot about the game.
Q: Let me hear your list of underrated players.
A: Definitely Priest Holmes was underrated. Leon Washington doesn’t get any love that he deserves. Jamaal Charles isn’t in the Hall of Fame yet. … There’s so many … even from like a Hall of Fame perspective, Devin Hester’s not in the Hall of Fame yet … Larry Johnson. … Devonta Freeman, for what he’s done for the game, especially being like a guy that’s my size, he paved the way for some of us. Even like a guy like Clyde [Edwards-Helaire] to be a first-round pick. … I’ll have to sit down and make a longer list, you know what I mean? … I definitely could. … Ronnie Brown was a guy who was really good in the league … Doug Martin, he was good for a while … Theo Riddick. A lot of guys get a lot of love to run that choice route nowadays. He’s the best choice runner of all time, that little angle route. … Fred Taylor … Steven Jackson. … Willis McGahee was another one. … DeAngelo Williams. And Warrick Dunn, too.
Q: Did people tell you that you were undersized?
A: No, not really. I never heard that until I was getting drafted. I mean people always told me, but I never really listened, I guess. I guess it was more like people were telling my dad and stuff. I remember a couple of schools in high school they said I wasn’t really like fast enough. But that’s on them. They see what I’m doing.
Q: Did that bother you at that time?
A: No. You look at some of the greatest running backs of all time, they’re not 4.3 guys. Some of ’em are not even 4.4 guys. But you talk about how you play the position.
Q: Which was a better game for you, your high school game against American Heritage, or your game for North Carolina against Miami?
A: Probably the high school game, because I had seven touchdowns in that game and 500 all-purpose yards. But also, I don’t know, I’d probably say Miami because the level of competition was better.
Q: What was it like playing for your father?
A: He never treated me like his son, he always treated me like a player. But I kind of made it easy because I was always a very coachable kid, and he wanted me to be great, so I wanted to be great. too.
Q: Other than your passion for the game, what do you think will give you a chance to be great in the NFL?
A: I feel like, for me, it’s about consistency and the want to be consistent. And then work ethic and asking good questions.
Q: From your Twitter: “Discipline is the No. 1 form of self-love. If you’re going to impress someone, impress yourself. Go hard and push the limit!”
A: When I heard it, it really resonated with me because I’m not doing something to impress anybody. I’m doing something ’cause I feel like it’s the right thing to do or it’s the best thing to do. … I feel like I can take care of myself later on, I gotta make sure that the people around me are good. Sometimes you gotta take care of yourself.
Q: Why did you like Carmelo Anthony so much?
A: He was so fun to watch, and for a while he was my favorite player. I bought a Carmelo Anthony jersey, and this was when he was with the Knicks. He’s like a bucket-getter, like an old-school, just like whoever gets the most points wins.
Q: Who are other athletes outside football you like?
A: Muhammad Ali, he’s probably my favorite athlete ever. What he had to go through, and he stood for what he felt like was right whether people agree with it or not, with meanwhile being a champion. He wasn’t just like a boxer, he was a man first.
Q: Tell me about C3 Sports.
A: Me and my two brothers are working on dropping some more clothes. We have sold a lot of clothes, but we’re focused on being even better, and better and better.
Q: Three dinner guests?
A: My grandma for sure, [Barrack] Obama, Jesus.
Q: Favorite movies?
A: “The Dark Knight,” “Django [Unchained].”
Q: Favorite actor?
A: Denzel [Washington].
Q: Favorite actress?
A: Regina King.
Q: Favorite entertainer?
A: Roddy Ricch.
Q: Favorite meal?
A: Oxtail.
Q: Why do you like playing in New York so much?
A: It’s so cool because of the city. And not only like just New York, but the New Jersey fan base. The Jets are so cool because, like, when we went to London, it felt like a home game, which is unbelievable. When we win, the Empire State Building turns green, when we win? I may be mistaken, but I went to New York after we win, and it was green.