Bills' biggest free agent signing is falling well short of earning his big contract through seven games
When NFL free agency opened up on March 13, the Buffalo Bills still had Stefon Diggs on the roster. They opted to sign veteran wide receiver Curtis Samuel to a three year, $24M contract. He had familiar with offensive coordinator Joe Brady and general manager Brandon Beane from his time in Carolina, and the expectation […]
When NFL free agency opened up on March 13, the Buffalo Bills still had Stefon Diggs on the roster. They opted to sign veteran wide receiver Curtis Samuel to a three year, $24M contract. He had familiar with offensive coordinator Joe Brady and general manager Brandon Beane from his time in Carolina, and the expectation was that Samuel would bring versatility to the Buffalo passing attack.
Then on April 3, Buffalo traded Diggs to the Houston Texans. Samuel had even more expectations placed on him as the veteran in the passing attack. The Keon Coleman draft pick on Day 2 of the NFL Draft in late April didn't change that thought — surely the Bills had a plan for the versatile, shifty receiver that they gave a three year contract to.
Brady had plenty of kind words to say about Samuel back in the summer. He mentioned the familiarity and the flexibility that Samuel brings to the playbook.
We haven't seen it.
Samuel left Sunday's game early with a shoulder injury and did not return. After the game, head coach Sean McDermott said they didn't have an update yet.
Injury aside, Samuel simply hasn't been involved. Through seven games, Samuel has seen a total of 18 targets, catching 12 of them for 92 yards. Week 6 against the Jets, with a hobbled Khalil Shakir, was the most involved that we've seen, and that was a three catch, 44-yard performance.
With the addition of Amari Cooper into the fold, Samuel has been pushed even further down the pecking order.
What's the plan? How does this guy get on the field as anything more than a gadget guy at this point? Cooper, Keon Coleman, and Shakir are going to be the top three receivers. Mack Hollins is going to be fourth, and with his size and blocking ability, he'll get plenty of reps because of what he does to spring other players. After those receivers, you have the tight end duo of Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox to utilize, and three running backs in James Cook, Ray Davis, and Ty Johnson, all three of whom scored on Sunday.
Samuel's contract currently looks like, essentially, wasted money. It seems like he's nothing more than a depth option that can see the field on certain packages at times, but expecting Samuel to make a notable impact on the Bills offense doesn't seem likely.
Bills’ Josh Allen explains how Amari Cooper made such a huge impact in his first game for Buffalo
The Coop effect is real.
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