Duron Carter to Colts: Latest Contract Details, Analysis and Reaction

A little less than two years after Duron Carter failed to make the cut with the Minnesota Vikings, the wide receiver's NFL dreams are alive once again.   

Carter agreed to contract terms with the Indianapolis Colts on Monday, the team announced, via NFL.com's Adam Caplan.

On Feb. 6, Joel Corry of CBS Sports reported the details of the deal:

After not getting selected during the 2013 NFL draft, the 23-year-old wideout failed to catch on after a tryout with the Vikings. Carter then headed north to the CFL, where he joined the Montreal Alouettes.

Over two seasons with the Alouettes, Carter caught 124 passes for 1,939 yards and 12 touchdowns. Those numbers were enough to get him on the NFL radar again. CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora reported at the beginning of December that nearly half the league was registering some level of interest:

ESPN.com's Ben Goessling reported on Jan. 8 that Carter was receiving a lot of attention from Minnesota and had a few more workouts on the schedule if necessary:

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He will work out for the Vikings on Friday, and could still visit with San Francisco, Cleveland or Carolina after his trip to Minnesota. He isn't able to sign with a team until Feb. 10, but can agree to a deal before then. Things could move quickly with the Vikings if his visit goes well; the team has kept in touch with him since his 2013 tryout, and a NFL source said the Vikings' interest in Duron Carter is "beyond a workout" this time around.

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Carter comes from great bloodlines. His father, Cris, was a legendary Vikings wideout and had his bust enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013.

Cris Carter spoke about his son's road to the NFL and his belief that Duron will eventually thrive in the league, per Mark Craig of the Star Tribune in Minneapolis:

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Very few have taken the route to the NFL that Duron has taken. It may take him some time, but he's got enough talent. He's got really good size, good speed [4.54 40-yard dash], and his route running is probably his strength. He has good hands. If he makes the necessary changes in his life, he's got a chance to make it in the NFL.

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The younger Carter had three opportunities to play at the FBS level. He first committed to Ohio State, where he caught 13 passes for 176 yards and a touchdown as a freshman in 2009. He then left the program in June 2010.

After a brief stint at Coffeyville (Kansas) Community College, Carter transferred to Alabama, where he never played a down and eventually left in July 2012. He then headed to Florida Atlantic, where he ultimately exited in the winter of 2012 after failing to post the necessary grades.

Cris Carter said in an interview with Mike Garafolo of USA Today that he didn't think his son's academic issues should raise too many red flags:

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"He didn't commit a crime, he has no tattoos, he has no kids, and he's a pleasant kid. His thing is he hates school, though," Cris Carter told USA TODAY Sports. "And I'm his dad. He's really bright; he's got an IQ over 130. He just hates school. We gave him the pretest on the Wonderlic. He got a 28."

Once more, Cris repeated with emphasis on each word: "He. Just. Hates. (Bleeping). School."

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Now that a few years have elapsed from Carter's disappointing college career and he's proved himself in the CFL, the timing seems right for a move to the NFL. The only question is whether his talent will translate.

Former NFL wideout and current Alouettes star Chad Johnson doesn't think there's any doubt, per La Canfora:

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller wrote a scouting report on Carter in which he compared the emerging prospect to the Pittsburgh Steelers' Martavis Bryant. Miller praised Carter's route-running ability and versatility but noted Carter can get jammed too often and focuses too much on making the spectacular happen when simplicity would suffice.

Signing Carter will undoubtedly be a risk for Indianapolis, but adding any rookie wide receiver is always a bit of a gamble. It's not unprecedented for a CFL player to successfully make the jump, with Warren Moon perhaps being the most famous example.

With the Colts in need of another playmaking receiver to help Andrew Luck, however, bringing Carter into the fold is a necessary leap of faith.