Sometimes numbers lie. Just as pre-election polls can be wrong about the way people plan to vote, stats can be misleading about how well a particular football player is performing. Perhaps nobody exemplifies that more than Panthers wide receiver Curtis Samuel.
Samuel has been involved in trade rumors and offers for a long time, now. So far, Carolina’s front office has rejected them and maintained their commitment to the 2017 second-round draft pick. Today, Panthers offensive coordinator Joe Brady continued a trend of publicly-positive statements about Samuel’s game. In his Zoom press conference, Brady said Samuel is playing at an extremely high level and making plays in the run game that go unnoticed.
Panthers OC Joe Brady says that he feels Curtis Samuel is playing at an "extremely high level" and that he's also making plays in the run game that go unnoticed.
— Alaina Getzenberg (@agetzenberg) October 8, 2020
This is correct.
While Samuel has dropped a couple passes, his early numbers don’t reflect his talent. Through four games, he’s caught 14 of 18 targets, totaling 147 yards and hasn’t scored a touchdown yet. The team has also been using Samuel as a rusher out of the backfield with poor results. He’s averaged just 3.2 yards per carry on 11 attempts. His blocking admittedly hasn’t been perfect, but Samuel has made some good ones on big runs by Mike Davis.
All that being said, Samuel still hasn’t been able to reach his full potential after three and a quarter seasons. Injuries, poor quarterback play, questionable playcalling and old fashioned bad luck have all played a role. Hopefully, the Panthers recognize that and figure out a way to really unlock Samuel’s ability. Giving him a contract extension is still their best option.
However, if they’re not confident they can get the most out of Samuel, they have to at least consider offers when the trade deadline comes up in a few weeks. Letting him sign somewhere else in 2021 and getting nothing in return would be another inexcusable failure by general manager Marty Hurney.
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