Tag: Kam Curl

Eagles to host Commanders in NFC Championship game after 28-22 win over Rams

Eagles to host Commanders in NFC Championship game after 28-22 win over Rams in the NFC Divisional Round

The Eagles are headed to the NFC title game and host their division rival, the Washington Commanders. After holding on for a 28-22 win over the Rams in the NFC divisional round, the Eagles will play the Washington Commanders.

In what can only be described as a barn burner, Philadelphia looked like they put the game away after going up 28-15, but the Rams scored a late fourth-quarter touchdown to pull within seven. After the Eagles could not maximize their final offensive drive, the Rams had one final shot on a ten-play, 60-yard drive that fell short with an incomplete pass to Puka Nucau at the Philadelphia 22-yard line.

The No. 2 seed Eagles will host the No. 6 seed Washington Commanders (12-5), who defeated the No. 1 seed Detroit Lions (15-2) 45-31 at Ford Field on Saturday night.

Washington’s 45 points were the most in a playoff game in franchise history.

Detroit quarterback Jared Goff threw three interceptions and was uneven all night. He went 23-40 passing for 313 yards (7.8 avg), one touchdown, and a 59.7 quarterback rating. The Lions’ running game was dynamic but underused, as Jahmyr Gibbs had 14 carries for 105 yards (7.5 avg) and two rushing touchdowns.

NFL Playoff picks: Unlock exclusive data-driven predictions

For Washington, Offensive Rookie of the Year favorite and Pro Bowler, Jayden Daniels was 22-31 passing for 299 yards (9.6 avg), two touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 122.9 quarterback rating.

In an offensive shootout, the two teams combined for over 1,000 yards of offense and 57 first downs.

Philadelphia and Washington split the season series, with the Commanders pulling off a 36-33 home win in Week 16 after Jalen Hurts was ruled out with a concussion.

Sights and sounds from first half as Eagles holds a 13-10 lead over Rams in divisional round

Sights and sounds from first half as Eagles holds a 13-10 lead over Rams in divisional round

The weather came as expected, but there were plenty of big plays in the first half as the Eagles hold a 13-10 lead over the Rams at home in the divisional round game on Sunday. A Philadelphia win and Nick Sirianni would host the Washington Commanders in the NFC title game next week. The Eagles lost rookie cornerback Quinyon Mitchell in the first half with a shoulder injury, and Isaiah Rodgers matched up with Rams wide receivers on the outside, which will be something to watch. With the second half quickly approaching, here sights and sounds from the first 30 minutes. ***

Eagles vs. Rams: Pregame sights and sounds from NFC Divisional Round game

We’re looking at pregame sights and sounds from the Philadelphia Eagles matchup against the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional round

We’re now minutes away from the Eagles, and Rams kicking off their divisional-round matchup at Lincoln Financial Field.

Philadelphia is look to reach 7-0 in the Divisional Round at home in their franchise history and advance to another NFC Championship Game. With kickoff moments away, here are the pregame sights and sounds from a gigantic matchup.

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Saquon Barkley runs the Rams out of SoFi Stadium, carrying the Eagles to their 7th straight win

A sea of Eagles fans took over SoFi Stadium, carrying Philadelphia to its 7th straight win on Sunday night as Saquon Barkley rushed for 255 yards on the night

The Eagles are 9-2 and have won seven straight games after Saquon Barkley exploded in the running game, and A.J. Brown was dominant in the passing game. Philadelphia put the league on notice with a 37-20 win at SoFi Stadium on Sunday.

If not for a late Matthew Stafford touchdown pass to Cooper Kupp, Philadelphia would have exited Los Angeles with a 37-14 road win just seven days before a monster matchup with the Baltimore Ravens in Week 13.

Barkley rushed for 255 yards on the night and had 302 total yards of offense in a game that saw A.J. Brown log 109 yards receiving and a touchdown on seven targets.

Kam Curl injury vs. Vikings: Latest news on Rams safety

Rams safety Kam Curl is dealing with a knee injury. Here are the latest updates.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

It was a tough start to the game for the Los Angeles Rams’ defense, allowing an opening drive touchdown to the Minnesota Vikings. In addition, they lost their starting safety Kam Curl to a knee injury.

Curl was tended to by trainers on the field and then taken into the locker room for further evaluation. It’s unclear the severity of the injury, but he’s officially questionable to return. In his place, rookie Kamren Kinchens stepped in at safety alongside Quentin Lake.

Curl has been one of the Rams’ best run defenders and tacklers all season, so if he’s out for any extended period of time, it’ll be a big blow to the defense.

Update: Curl returned to the game in the second quarter.

Commanders didn’t even make an offer to safety Kam Curl

The Commanders didn’t even attempt to retain Kam Curl.

Over the past two seasons, former Washington coach Ron Rivera made it clear how important safety Kam Curl was to the Commanders. Ex-defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio often echoed those sentiments.

Rivera and Del Rio are gone. Washington has a new head coach (Dan Quinn) and a new general manager (Adam Peters). And through one week of free agency, we’ve seen Peters begin taking a wrecking ball to the roster Rivera assembled.

Still, many believed Curl would be among Washington’s free agents with a high probability of returning. It didn’t happen, as Curl signed a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Rams.

Before Curl signed with the Rams, the Commanders had already decided to move on from Curl after signing former Panthers safety Jeremy Chinn to a one-year deal.

Did Washington even attempt to keep Curl?

According to Sam Fortier of The Washington Post, the Commanders didn’t even make Curl an offer.

Why? Fortier offered the following:

Washington didn’t offer a deal to Curl because it believed veteran Jeremy Chinn would be a “better fit” at box safety for its new defensive scheme. (Chinn, 26, signed a one-year deal worth a base value of $4.1 million.) The official declined to elaborate on the specifics of the new scheme or why Chinn was a better fit.

Curl’s lack of turnovers iddn’t help his chances at a return. After recording three interceptions as a rookie in 2020, Curl had none over the past three seasons. Still, he was a good, dependable player and always assignment-sound.

It was no secret Curl wanted to stay in Washington. However, a flooded safety market due to multiple releases ahead of free agency hurt his market.

Peters has signed 20 players since free agency opened last week. Only four of the signees played for the Commanders last season. Most outside signees were signed to modest short-team deals as Peters sought to fill holes and maintain financial flexibility for future seasons.

Commanders avoid a franchise tag blunder

No franchise tag this year for Washington, and that’s a good thing.

The 2024 offseason franchise/transition tag deadlines passed at 4 p.m. Tuesday with most of the NFL, including the Commanders, taking a pass this year.

The Commanders did not tag any of their pending free agents. Only eight of the 32 teams used a tag.

Consequently, these eight players will not be able to negotiate with other clubs when free agency begins. Meanwhile, all of the Commanders’ pending free agents will be free to negotiate with other teams beginning March 11, the first day of the legal tampering period.

Some older Washington fans may recall the Washington Redskins’ first use of the franchise tag on one of their unrestricted free agents. It occurred in 1993 — the year the tag was introduced — when GM Charley Casserly placed the tag on linebacker Wilber Marshall.

Marshall had been an All-American at the University of Florida, and an All-Pro with the Chicago Bears, before he joined Washington in 1988. Marshall had big seasons for Washington in 1991 and 1992 and wanted to test the free agent market. Casserly applied the franchise tag. Marshall was upset, took the team to court and was subsequently traded to the Houston Oilers.

Who could forget Bruce Allen and former owner Daniel Snyder mishandling Kirk Cousins’ contract? Scot McCloughan urged Allen and Snyder in 2015 to extend Cousins because he was developing into a fine quarterback. Sure enough, Cousins led the Redskins to winning seasons in 2015 (9-7) and 2016 (8-7-1), but Allen and Snyder felt they knew best and never extended Cousins. He gambled on himself by playing on consecutive franchise tags and has made big money with the Vikings.

Some Washington fans never appreciated Cousins and still refer to him as a loser and a choker. However, the fact remains that Washington has not had a winning season since 2016.

Who is the one free agent the Commanders can’t afford to lose?

Who is the one free agent that the Commanders can’t afford to lose?

Free agency is one week away, and the Washington Commanders have an NFL-high $91.5 million in salary cap space, according to Over the Cap. Tuesday’s franchise tag deadline passed without the Commanders using the tag on anyone. Safety Kam Curl would have been the most likely to receive the tag, but it was not a consideration for Washington this time.

At this time next week, close to 30 Commanders will be free agents. There will be starters and key reserves looking to sign new deals in Washington — or elsewhere.

The Commanders’ top free agents are cornerback Kendall Fuller, wide receiver Curtis Samuel and Curl. Washington has the ability to keep several of its own free agents and add some from the outside, but with a new regime, there will be plenty of changes.

If you’re general manager Adam Peters, who is the one free agent you can’t afford to lose?

CBS Sports recently looked at one free agent from every NFL team that it couldn’t afford to lose. Fuller was the choice for Washington.

Kendall Fuller is one of the best defensive backs available this offseason: His 83.1 PFF defensive grade is the sixth-best among cornerbacks who played at least 100 snaps last season. Fuller, who snagged two interceptions, was one of the few bright spots on what was the NFL’s worst defense last season since their unit was the lowest ranked team in scoring defense (30.5 points per game), total defense (388.9 total yards per game), passing touchdowns (39) and passer rating (105.7).

Keeping Fuller around for the Dan Quinn era could pay massive dividends since Quinn took a Cowboys unit in 2020 that was dreadful and helped flip them into a top five group within a few seasons.

Curl’s age is certainly a reason for him to be the choice. However, we agree with CBS here. Why? Fuller’s age and knees are a concern, but it isn’t easy to find good cornerback play. Fuller may move to the slot or even safety, but he will thrive anywhere he lines up.

The Commanders’ secondary was bad last season, but the new coaching staff will get more out of this group. Sure, Washington will need to add to the defensive backfield, but letting go of its best player (Fuller) wouldn’t be a great start.

Of course, Fuller’s potential return will come down to cost. Washington ha the money, but will it choose to go younger?

Did Kam Curl say goodbye to the Commanders?

Once the franchise tag deadline passed, the Washington safety appeared to say goodbye.

When the Washington Commanders selected safety Kam Curl in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL draft, he was initially considered an afterthought. That’s often the case with seventh-round picks.

That was until training camp. It was clear early in training camp that Curl was a keeper. The 6-foot-2 rookie would play all 16 games for Washington, starting 11 and finishing with three interceptions, including a touchdown.

The arrow was pointing up for Curl. Washington found a seventh-round gem in the former Arkansas Razorback.

Curl followed up his next season by playing all but one game and making 14 starts. Curl’s impact was particularly felt in 2022 when he missed five games that season.

Former coach Ron Rivera and ex-defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio always stressed how important Curl was to the team. If Rivera had his way, he would’ve extended Curl after last season, but with the team for sale, those types of moves were on the backburner. Then, Josh Harris took over in July, and it appeared any lucrative extensions were shelved until after the 2023 season.

The 2023 season is over, and Curl is a free agent. And the Commanders will not be placing the dreaded franchise tag on Curl, either. The deadline passed on Tuesday, and Washington tagged no one.

Curiously, Curl took to X — formerly known as Twitter — shortly after the franchise tag deadline passed and posted the following message — or emoji.

Is that Curl saying goodbye to Washington? Or is that an emotional tweet?

It’s hard to tell. We know the Commanders would like to have Curl back, but the days of overvaluing their own are over under Adam Peters. That’s not a knock on Curl. He’s earned the right to be back. But Peters has an idea of what he is willing to pay, Curl’s value, and the players he already has on the roster.

What does that mean?

We’ll see next week.

The free-agent safety market is robust, even with tags applied to some of the better ones. Still, Curl will have a market. He is a good player. Will that market lead him back to Washington?

 

6 pending free agents the Commanders need to re-sign

We look at six unrestricted free agents the Commanders should bring back in 2024.

In two weeks, the legal tampering period of the NFL offseason begins. NFL teams can negotiate contracts with impending free agents from other teams for two days, but nothing can be signed until the new league year opens two days later on March 13.

That gives all 32 NFL teams the next two weeks exclusivity in negotiating with their own free agents. The Washington Commanders have 28 free agents, 18 of which are unrestricted free agents.

The Commanders have a new general manager (Adam Peters) and a new coaching staff led by Dan Quinn. So, while other teams have been preparing for free agency, Washington’s new staff has been evaluating the current roster, including its free agents.

How many of the Commanders’ free agents should they retain in 2024?

We name six free agents Washington should re-sign. Not included are wide receiver Curtis Samuel and cornerback Kendall Fuller. It’s not that the Commanders wouldn’t love both players back, but Fuller is older, has some knee concerns, and has earned a raise. Washington can look to the draft to replace Samuel’s productivity for cheaper.

Here are those six free agents, for which we will focus only on the unrestricted free agents.