Teen diabetes diagnosis saves Carter
Daily insulin injections don’t restrain return specialist’s high-energy effort
Growing up in California, DeAndre Carter couldn’t wait for football season to start.
Although the future Texans return specialist was extremely undersized, football was always his favorite sport. Carter plays the game with a high-energy, darting and physical style That’s why it concerned Carter and his family greatly when he was too exhausted to make it through practice entering his freshman year at Washington High School in Fremont, a suburb of San Jose. His coach sent him home.
Carter had lost a significant amount of weight and was dealing with other symptoms, including nausea and experiencing enough lethargy that he slept the majority of the day.
“I was losing weight like crazy,” Carter said. “I went to practice one day and couldn’t make it through, so the coach sent me home. I get home and I was throwing up. My dad took me to the hospital and they ran me through all the tests.”
Carter was diagnosed
with Type 1 diabetes, a chronic condition with no known cure where the pancreas produces little or no insulin. That diagnosis saved his life.
The 5-8, 190-pounder is dependent on insulin injections every day and he wears a monitor to keep close track of his blood sugar.
“I’m to the point now where I don’t notice it as much,” Carter said. “It’s an extra responsibility you have to stay on top of to make sure your blood sugar is good throughout the game.
“I just (measure) my blood sugar every day before I eat and I take insulin based on the amount of carbs I eat with that meal. I try to cut down carb intake as much as possible. The insulin kind of balances that out, but carbs are what makes your blood sugar go up and down.”
Carter works closely with team nutritionist Ladd Harris to maintain a strict diet that limits his intake of carbohydrates. Harris tailors Carter’s meals individually to ensure that his energy remains high and he’s healthy.
“Real big,” Carter said of Harris’ importance. “When I first got here, we sat down and put together a plan. He’s been a big help. All the guys in the training room help me with my prescriptions and taking care of me during halftime.
“I think I’ve got a pretty good handle on it, so my energy pretty much stays about the same. If you don’t take care of it, you can have dips.”
Carter wore blue and red cleats during last Sunday’s game against the Broncos during the NFL’s “My Cause, My Cleats” campaign. The cleats featured a “JDRF” logo to raise awareness for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, a nonprofit organization that funds Type 1 diabetes research.
“It was really important to me,” Carter said. “The more you can do to get awareness out there and get money donated to get a cure for it and better medicine, the better. It’s huge for me.
“That’s my favorite part about the league is the platform we have to affect change to bring awareness to different subjects in the world. Being able to be a positive influence is one of my favorite things about being an NFL player.”
On the field, Carter has overcome diabetes and kick coverage schemes to emerge as an effective return man.
“He’s done a good job,” Texans coach Bill O’Brien said. “He’s a very solid player. He’s a really good teammate, makes good decisions back there. He’s done an excellent job.”
Carter ranks fourth in the NFL with a 9.4 average per punt return. Carter also has three receptions for 53 yards in limited playing time on offense. He’s averaging 21.2 yards per kickoff return.
“He’s been doing a great job of picking the right times when to fair catch, when to take a punt for 10 yards,” Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson said. “That’s huge in that specialteams field where those 5 or 10 yards where if he fair catches it or lets it roll, we lose 20-plus yards.
“He’s doing a great job. He’s going to continue to do that and he knows his role and he knows what’s best. You can tell that he’s improving and trying get better each week.”
Carter originally joined the Texans last year when he was claimed off waivers from the Eagles. A former undrafted free agent, he has previous stints with the Ravens, Raiders, Patriots and 49ers.
“DeAndre is a hard-working guy,” Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins said. “Coming off an injury last year, I saw him in the training room. He busted his butt to come back.”
Until last year, Carter hadn’t played in regularseason games. He caught 20 passes for 195 yards in seven games, including three starts, for the Texans.
“I appreciate the coaches appreciating me,” Carter said. “I feel like anytime you can, you try to make a big play in the return game because it could be a spark to your team. I try to make the most of every opportunity to go the distance with it.”
As a smaller player who went undrafted out of Sacramento State, Carter doesn’t lack for motivational fuel.
“I’ve always got a chip on my shoulder,” Carter said. “Ever since I was little, people told me you’re too small. I went to a small school. I was undrafted.
“You definitely use those things on a daily basis to motivate yourself. You have these different experiences and different situations. It’s all fuel to the fire.”