Tag: Curtis Samuel

WATCH: Sam Howell finds Curtis Samuel for Commanders’ first touchdown

Howell finds Samuel for Washington’s first touchdown.

It took long enough, but the Washington Commanders finally scored against the Los Angeles Rams in their Week 15 meeting after trailing 20-0.

After Washington managed just 83 total yards in the first half, despite the defense forcing two turnovers, the Commanders finally got going midway through the third quarter.

Running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. had multiple positive runs on the drive, and quarterback Sam Howell converted a fourth down with a nice scramble and throw to wide receiver Terry McLaurin.

Finally, it was Howell finding wide receiver Curtis Samuel from 19 yards out to put Washington on the board.

Check it out:

Unfortunately for the Commanders, on their next possession, Howell looked deep for McLaurin, who appeared to make a highlight-reel catch, but it was ruled incomplete. The officials didn’t call pass interference on the Rams defensive back, who was clearly holding McLaurin’s hand, and Washington was forced to punt.

 

Patrick Mahomes’ outrage with NFL officials falls on deaf ears for Commanders’ fans

Patrick Mahomes was upset with NFL officials for making the right call. Commanders’ fans remember a similar call against them last season.

Poor Patrick Mahomes. That’s not something you hear too often, but after his Kansas City Chiefs fell to the Buffalo Bills, 20-17, at home on Sunday, Mahomes ripped into NFL officiating after the game.

Why was Mahomes so upset?

The star quarterback had just completed a pass to tight end Travis Kelce, who lateraled the ball back to wide receiver Kadarius Toney. Toney took it into the end zone for an easy score, and suddenly, the Chiefs would have a 23-20 lead with 1:12 remaining.

But, wait, there were flags.

As it turns out, Toney was lined up in the neutral zone, meaning the score did not count, and the Chiefs were penalized five yards. Mahomes’ subsequent three passes fell incomplete, and the Bills sent the Chiefs to their second loss in a row.

Per Jeff Darlington of ESPN, here’s what Mahomes said after the game.

Barely offsides? Come on, Patrick.

Mahomes makes some good points about NFL officiating. It’s horrible. It’s been awful. But the officials didn’t get this one wrong.

Gene Steratore, a former longtime NFL official and now a rules analyst for CBS, said Toney was “blatantly” lined up offside.

Need proof?

Washington fans certainly have no sympathy for Mahomes and the Chiefs.

Let’s flashback to Week 15 of the 2022 NFL season. The Commanders were hosting the Giants in a game with massive playoff implications. Late in the game, with New York holding a 20-12 lead, Washington running back Brian Robinson Jr. scored from one yard out to make it 20-18 with 1:03 remaining. The Commanders were a two-point conversion away from tying the game.

There was a flag. The officials called wide receiver Terry McLaurin for the same infraction as Toney. But things were a bit different. McLaurin was directly in front of the official on the right side of the field, and you can see him asking the official if he was lined up correctly. The official appeared to give McLaurin the nod.

Here it is:

McLaurin spoke about the interaction after the game, confirming he checked with the official before the play. And, unlike Toney’s infraction, this wasn’t blatant. Former NFL head of officiating Dean Blandino disagreed with the call.

To make matters worse, two plays later, Taylor Heinicke’s pass to Curtis Samuel fell incomplete when Giants cornerback Darnay Holmes clearly interfered on the play. Officials didn’t call it, and the ball was turned over on downs, leading to a New York win.

So, in a matter of a few plays, NFL officiating stuck it to Washington — twice. The league later admitted it’s fault on the non-PI call in the end zone.

No one will ever know if that game actually cost the Commanders a playoff spot. Regardless of whether or not Washington was good enough to make the playoffs, it was irrelevant. The officials actually cost them a real shot at winning a game with playoff implications.

Here’s the non-call against Samuel:

No one should feel sorry for Mahomes. The Chiefs are struggling, losing two in a row and three of their last four games, but they’ll be fine. And while he makes some valid points about officiating, the NFL didn’t get this one wrong.

Sorry, Patrick. Washington fans know this feeling all too well.

Dolphins LB on Commanders offense: They struggle with the ‘routine parts’

Dolphins linebacker has some revealing comments regarding Washington’s offense.

It’s another lost season for the Washington Commanders. After Sunday’s 45-15 loss to the Miami Dolphins, Washington fell to 4-9, guaranteeing that head coach Ron Rivera would not have one winning record in his four seasons as head coach.

There have been a lot of lost seasons for Washington over the years. And in those lost seasons, opposing players often sound off about the simplicity of Washington’s offense or defense.

After Sunday’s loss, Dolphins linebacker David Long Jr. spoke to the media and offered some revealing thoughts about the offense.

“All you really have to do to defend this team is just be disciplined,” Long said via Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post. “They kind of struggle with the routine parts. When we watched them play, their best stuff was when [Sam] Howell was scrambling, or they moved the pocket and just let him try to make plays. There’s gonna be rollouts and breaking the pocket, plaster. But if you just stay on your man or find somebody when you don’t have nobody, it’s really easy to defeat stuff like that.”

That quote is pretty damning. Coming from an opposing player, it’s much more detailed than some of the nonsense the Giants said when they beat the Commanders. If Long and the Dolphins saw this, what do other teams see? And what is offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy doing to counteract this?

Howell has been excellent off-schedule. Bieniemy doesn’t move the pocket enough for Howell, often keeping him in shotgun.

Long wasn’t done. He had the following to say about the receivers.

‘They have some good dudes,” he said. “Terry [McLaurin], [Curtis] Samuel is cool, too. But I wouldn’t say that they have a dominant dude that you come in saying, ‘Oh, we gotta make sure to stop bro.’ I say that respectfully, too.'”

Here’s another quote about McLaurin that stood out.

“Terry makes some great plays, but it’s not like they force it to him or go out of their way to get him the ball so he can be contained,” Long said.

He’s not wrong. When you see others saying someone shut down McLaurin, that’s not always the case. Often, it’s Washington shutting down McLaurin. One of the knocks on Bieniemy is that he hasn’t done enough to force the action to McLaurin — Washington’s best offensive player.

The Commanders have a lot of problems, but they are much deeper than Howell.

Commanders RB Brian Robinson Jr. ruled out with injury

No Brian Robinson for the remainder of Sunday’s game vs. Dolphins.

The Washington Commanders didn’t have a lot go right in the first half of their Week 13 game against the Miami Dolphins. Two players who did stand out for Washington in the first half were running back Brian Robinson Jr. and wide receiver Curtis Samuel.

Robinson rushed for 53 yards on seven attempts in the first half but will miss the remainder of the game with a hamstring injury.

Robinson entered Sunday’s game leading Washington with 611 rushing yards and five touchdowns. He’s also been a big part of the passing offense, with 29 receptions for 326 yards and three touchdowns.

Antonio Gibson and rookie Chris Rodriguez Jr. will split Robinson’s reps for the remainder of Sunday’s game.

Washington has a bye week in Week 14.

Commanders QB Sam Howell impressed with Curtis Samuel

Howell explains why he has so much confidence in Curtis Samuel.

Wide receiver Curtis Samuel had his best game with the Washington Commanders in last week’s loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The seven-year veteran caught nine passes for 100 yards against Dallas; both are highs for him during his three seasons in Washington.

Samuel was terrific against a stout Dallas defense, finding holes in the coverage and proving to be a reliable target for second-year quarterback Sam Howell. Samuel also found ways to create yards after the catch.

Samuel is sometimes forgotten in an offense that also has Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson, but Howell knows where he is at all times.

“Curtis, he is a great player, and just the way he can get in and out of breaks makes him really effective,” Howell said Wednesday. “He’s a guy that has a really good feel for zone coverage. And then, like I said, his ability to get in and out of breaks and create separation versus man-coverage is really effective. I think when you have a good feel for zone, you can beat man-coverage that makes you a really good receiver.”

Howell was asked a follow-up question about Samuel’s ability to separate, something that has been a problem for Washington’s receivers in Eric Bieniemy’s offense.

“I just think obviously he is a good player,” Howell answered.

“He is a smart player, and he knows how to use his body, knows how to get in and out on breaks, and he does a good job of knowing what things can create separation versus the defenders. All of our guys are good versus man-coverage, and Curtis just has a really good twitch, and he can just get out of those brakes really fast. He’s a great player; I have a lot of confidence in him.”

It’s always good to have the trust of your quarterback.

For Washington to have a chance in its final five games, Bieniemy must do a better job of scheming the ball into the hands of his playmakers. Samuel is excellent around the line of scrimmage. As a former running back, he possesses excellent vision. He can also make plays down the field, but the Commanders have rarely used him in that role.

 

Commanders PFF grades: Best and worst performers vs. Cowboys in Week 12

Which Commanders performed the best in Thursday’s embarrassing loss? Which ones struggled? The grades are in.

The Washington Commanders dropped to 4-8 after Thursday’s 45-10 Thanksgiving Day loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Amazingly, this was a competitive game entering the fourth quarter, with Dallas leading 20-10.

That’s when everything fell apart for the Commanders.

Washington’s defense finally broke, allowing two Dak Prescott touchdown passes — he had four on the day — and Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland intercepted Washington quarterback Sam Howell, returning it for a touchdown, his fifth this season and a new NFL record.

The loss was so bad that head coach Ron Rivera moved on from defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio and secondary coach Brent Vieselmeyer on Friday.

It’s time to review Pro Football Focus‘ best and worst from Washington’s Week 12 game against Dallas. Here are the PFF grades.

Studs and mostly duds from Commanders’ loss to Cowboys

There wasn’t a lot of good for the Commanders on Thanksgiving Day.

The Washington Commanders were humiliated by the Dallas Cowboys 45-10 on Thanksgiving Day in front of a national audience. It doesn’t get much worse than that.

Some will point to Washington’s 31-19 loss to the Giants last week as much worse. And there is truth in that, considering the Commanders turned the ball over six times, and the Giants are terrible.

But if the Giants are terrible, what is Washington? New York has three wins — two over Washington.

So, let’s circle back to Thursday and the Commanders’ latest embarrassing effort under head coach Ron Rivera. As difficult as it may be to believe, this was a 10-point game to begin the fourth quarter. Yet, in typical Washington fashion, everything fell apart, and the rout was on.

Here are the studs and mostly duds from Thursday’s loss.

Commanders’ Week 10 inactives vs. Seahawks

The Commanders and Seahawks’ inactives for their Week 10 matchup. Good news: Curtis Samuel is back.

The Washington Commanders released their inactive list ahead of Sunday’s Week 10 game against the Seattle Seahawks from Lumen Field.

In some good news, wide receiver Curtis Samuel (toe) is active. Samuel missed last week’s game and was limited in practice on Friday.

Here are full of Washington’s inactives for Week 10:

  • CB Tariq Castro-Fields
  • G Julian Good-Jones
  • TE Curtis Hodges
  • TE Cole Turner
  • WR Mitchell Tinsley

And here are Seattle’s inactive players for Week 10:

Commanders vs. Seahawks: Final injury report for Week 10

The Commanders and Seahawks are pretty healthy heading into Week 10.

The final injury report is in for Week 10, and only one player is ruled out for the meeting between the Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders.

While the Seahawks listed several players on the initial injury report on Wednesday, only guard Anthony Bradford is ruled out for Sunday’s game.

As for the Commanders, starting wide receiver Curtis Samuel is questionable with a toe injury. Samuel missed last week’s game at New England.

Here is the Commanders’ final injury report:

  • WR Curtis Samuel: Questionable (toe)
  • CB Emmanuel Forbes: Full participant, will play (Achilles)

Here’s Seattle’s final injury report:

OUT

  • G Anthony Bradford: (knee)

QUESTIONABLE

  • LB Jordyn Brooks: hamstring
  • RB DeeJay Dallas: shoulder
  • TE Colby Parkinson: biceps
  • RB Kenny McIntosh: knee

Seattle head coach Pete Carroll is optimistic that all of the “questionable” players will be good to go Sunday vs. Washington.

Commanders vs. Seahawks: Thursday injury report for Week 10

A look at Thursday’s injury report and only two Commanders listed.

The Washington Commanders were back on the practice field Thursday, preparing for their Week 10 showdown against the Seattle Seahawks.

From an injury standpoint, things are looking good for the Commanders. Only two players were listed on the injury report, and no one was DNP (did not participate).

Seattle’s injury report looked much different.

Here is Washington’s injury report from Thursday:

  • WR Curtis Samuel: Limited (toe)
  • CB Emmanuel Forbes: Full (Achilles)

While Samuel was limited again, it’s a good sign, considering he missed the Week 9 game at New England.

Full

  • WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba – hip
  • RB Kenneth Walker III – chest
  • S Jamal Adams – knee
  • NT Jarran Reed – tooth
  • WR Tyler Lockett – hamstring
  • CB Tre Brown – toe
  • WR Dareke Young – groin
  • TE Noah Fant – wrist
  • LB Derick Hall – shoulder

The Seahawks had a long injury report, but things are trending in a positive way for some of their best players.