Lions Promote DeAndre Carter to the 53-Man Roster After Browns Stint
Detroit elevated the veteran WR from the practice squad Thursday, but a 2024 line of 9 catches for 72 yards says plenty about his fantasy ceiling.
Roster depth and return duty — no fantasy path to targets.
- Promoted to Lions' 53-man roster Thursday
- 111 career games, 21 starts since 2015
- 2024: 9 rec, 72 yds, 0 TD for the Bears
- Played just 4 games in 2025 before knee injury
- Our rank: WR #114, #307 overall
The Lions added a familiar special-teams name Thursday, signing wide receiver DeAndre Carter to the 53-man roster off their own practice squad. Carter, an undrafted free agent out of Sacramento State back in 2015, has now logged 111 career games with 21 starts across a long journeyman run.
The counting stats explain why this is a depth move, not a fantasy event. Carter last appeared with the Browns in 2025, playing only four games before a knee injury ended his stint. The year before that, in 2024, he caught nine passes for 72 yards and no touchdowns in 13 games for the Bears — roughly 16 PPR points for an entire season.
Detroit also tucked safety Myles Bryant onto the practice squad in the same round of transactions, the kind of roster housekeeping that rarely touches a fantasy lineup.
What Carter Actually Offers
Carter's real value lives on special teams and in the return game — that's the role that's kept him employed for a decade. The Lions didn't bring him up to feed him targets ahead of their established pass-catching group, and nothing in his usage history suggests otherwise. A receiver who totaled 72 yards across a full 2024 slate isn't about to flip into a weekly flex.
The Fantasy Verdict
This one's simple. Carter sits at WR #114 and #307 overall in our rankings, which is another way of saying he's not on any standard-league radar. Even in the deepest best-ball or 16-team formats, a depth promotion for a return specialist doesn't move the needle. Leave him on the wire, keep your bench spot for someone with a target share, and only circle back if an injury suddenly opens real snaps in Detroit's receiver room.
