Washington Football Team paid big money to add Curtis Samuel this offseason, signing the former Panthers wide receiver to a three-year, $34.5 million deal to start opposite Terry McLaurin. Three games into the 2021 season, Samuel has yet to take a single snap, missing much of the summer with a groin injury, then aggravating the injury days before the opener to land on injured reserve. Eligible to return to practice this week, however, the wideout will do just that, as The Washington Post reports, giving Washington three weeks to either activate Samuel or leave him on IR for the rest of the season.
Samuel previously conducted individual running drills on the side of a practice before Washington’s Week 3 loss, The Athletic’s Ben Standig notes, but Wednesday will mark his first official on-field action since training camp. This comes days after his absence was truly felt in the team’s offense during a 43-21 loss to the Bills, with Standig arguing that McLaurin is the only Washington player offering a “big-play element” when Samuel isn’t available.
Craving even more NFL coverage focusing on previews, recaps, news and analysis? Listen below and follow the Pick Six podcast for a daily dose of everything you need to follow pro football.
Samuel would likely find an immediate role upon his return, even if it’s this week against the Falcons, but coach Ron Rivera hasn’t committed to the former Panthers standout suiting up in Week 4.
“We’ll see how it goes on Wednesday,” Rivera said, according to The Post‘s Nicki Jhabvala. “That’s the thing we’re pretty excited (about) as a group. The offensive coaches are pretty fired up to see exactly where he is. If he has a good day Wednesday, we’ll progress and go forward.”
Samuel, who posted a career-high 77 catches for 851 yards with Carolina in 2020, opened camp on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list with a groin injury. While he later returned to the field following a stint there, as well as on the reserve/COVID-19 list, Washington put him back on PUP in mid-August before activating him once more, only to place him on IR prior to the start of the season. He missed just one game in 2020 but has battled injuries before, missing seven as a rookie and another three in 2018.
