LONDON - Bruce Carter played 34 snaps against Washington after missing the previous three games with a strained quadriceps.
He did not record a tackle.
Perhaps, that’s why he played just 16 snaps against Arizona.
He finished with three tackles, but played 11 fewer snaps than backup Kyle Wilber.
“It’s very frustrating,” Carter said. “My mom told me to control what I can, and that’s what I try to do. Hopefully, everything else will work itself out.”
Carter said he wasn’t told during the week that his playing time would decrease.
“I don’t know what it is,” he said. “It’s my job to play when they tell me to play. I’m just going with the program.”
Understand, Carter’s performance has perplexed the coaching staff many times because he has every physical tool you want in a linebacker, but the production hasn’t matched his physical prowess.
There are times he has been dominant and times he’s disappeared. Occasionally, it has happened within the same game.
The Cowboys wanted to draft weakside linebacker Ryan Shazier, but Pittsburgh took him one pick before the Cowboys drafted. They happily settled for Zack Martin.
“We’ve been playing a lot of different guys at linebacker, and Kyle Wilber has deserved some opportunities to play,” coach Jason Garrett said. “We’re going to play the best guys. When you have a few different options that’s good for your team.
“When you create competition for roster spots or playing time that’s a good thing. We’re going to keep rotating things to see who wants it more and who deserves it more.”
