Updated: 8/15/2008 10:37:22 AM
by Jim Wyatt, Tennessean Staff WriterIn a football helmet, Chris Carr is a jack-of-all-trades. Underneath the helmet, the first-year Titan is all that and more.
Name a topic and Carr can carry on a conversation ? from movies to politics to sports to foreign policies to music. He's an avid reader, constantly educating himself on everything from current events to ancient history. He also performs magic tricks.
Still, Carr considers himself a little naive.
"I love finding out about things, but it's one of those things where the more you know, the more you know you don't know,'' said the return man and defensive back, who'll face his old team, the Oakland Raiders, in a preseason game tonight at LP Field.
"There's so much stuff to know, and there's so much stuff out there that you'll never know. So for me it is one of those endless pursuits that never gets boring because you can always learn something new.''
In an NFL locker room, where playbooks trump anything else, you won't find many guys as well rounded as Carr. If it wasn't for football, in fact, he might be an attorney about now.
When he signed with the Raiders as a rookie free agent in 2005, he was prepared to go to law school if he didn't make the team. Four seasons later, he's still in the NFL.
While his new teammates say he's a one-of-a-kind guy in the locker room, they hope he'll also be a big contributor on the field this fall.
The 25-year-old Carr is competing for the punt and kick return jobs and could work his way into situational packages as a defensive back.
"Chris is an interesting guy,'' defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said.
"He definitely doesn't fall into the same trappings of your stereotypical professional athlete.''
The Titans signed the restricted free agent in April, ending his three-year run in Oakland and providing him with a new landscape to explore. And Carr really likes to explore.
His movie collection isn't what you might expect for an NFL player ? he has more than 30 Woody Allen movies and is such a fan of the longtime filmmaker that he's pushing them on teammates.
Safety Vincent Fuller recently watched Match Point at Carr's behest.
Carr is also big into boxing, but not for the blood. He's intrigued by the history of the sport and how fighters from so many countries have used the sport to escape poverty.
He can't read enough books for his liking, which is a big change from when he was a kid. He's especially into philosophy, history and science fiction. Carr said he got his work ethic from his mother, who raised three kids by herself. His motivation to learn came from a sister who consistently put up a 4.0 GPA in college.
"When you are younger and less mature, you kind of think it is kind of nerdy to read books,'' Carr said. "But when you get older you realize all that is foolishness and being smart is cool and reading books is cool.''
Even cooler: the sleight of hand magic he performs on teammates. He recently turned two $1 bills in cornerback Nick Harper's hand into a crisp new $20 bill. He wouldn't reveal his secret, but he learned a lot from ? you guessed it ? a book, The Royal Road to Magic.
"He has some good card tricks, too,'' said safety Donnie Nickey, his locker mate.
Football, and beyond
Carr, who made the dean's list on several occasions while majoring in political science at Boise State, isn't too worried about what might be up life's sleeve when his playing days are over. He hasn't completely ruled out making another run at law school, but likes the idea of being a professor.
Carr's smarts certainly show up on the field, Schwartz said.
"He is multidimensional. He can play corner, he can play safety, he can play nickel, and can be a returner, and you have to be smart to do that," Schwartz said. "And you have to be a good football player to do that because your skill set has to sort of transcend a lot of different positions.''
At least a few teammates have noticed Carr's smarts paying off in the parking lot, too. In a fleet of high-priced rides sits Carr's 1996 Honda Accord with an odometer closing in on 200,000 miles.
With gas prices so high, he said the old car helps him save money. But he admitted his wife needs the navigation system in the family's other vehicle, a Cadillac.
"Cars are a horrible investment,'' he said. "Because you lose money.''
That statement didn't surprise cornerback Eric King.
"You can see Chris has his things together as far as his life is concerned, where he wants to be, where he wants to go,'' he said. "He is definitely a knowing guy, but I guess that is one of the beauties of being in a locker room ? you get to meet all different kinds of guys with all kinds of different types of personalities.
"With him, he's one of those guys that no matter what, football or not, you know he'll be a successful guy.''
