Curtis Samuel shines for Commanders against Jaguars
Taking a closer look at both the performance of Curtis Samuel and how the Commanders used him.
Curtis Samuel was undoubtedly the star of the Washington Commanders win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. The receiver missed almost all of last year injured and the team was extra cautious with him during training camp and preseason. It was clear to see why they were so cautious with him given how heavily he was featured in the game plan against the Jaguars.
Samuel got off to a hot start and finished the game with eight catches for 55 yards and a touchdown along with four carries for 17 yards. His flexibility allowed Offensive Coordinator Scott Turner to line him up all over the field and create issues for the defense with so many different looks. As a receiver, Samuel saw most of his work from from the slot, running short underneath routes designed to get him the ball quickly and let him use his explosiveness after the catch to create yards.
On this play, Samuel simply spots up underneath with the option to break back outside if the coverage dictates him to. He’s the underneath option as part of a route combination with the tight end running a basic cross. But with the Jaguars dropping off into zone coverage, Carson Wentz quickly pulls the trigger to Samuel underneath and lets him go to work. Samuel makes the catch with defenders closing in on him. Samuel makes a ridiculous cut that makes the first defender miss completely, allowing Samuel to skip by him and work up the field. As other defenders catch up, he dives forward and nearly picks up the first down.
That type of cutting ability in the open field is extremely dangerous and makes Samuel a big threat to the defense. It also makes him a very nice target for the quarterback, knowing he can hit Samuel underneath on a simple pass and trust him to make a play after the catch to turn a small gain into a big one. Quite a few times early in the game. Turner called plays that used Samuel in this fashion. Things like bubble screens tagged onto run plays as part of a run-pass option (RPO) are perfect for a player like Samuel.
Here, the Commanders pair a zone run with a bubble screen to Samuel on the back side. Wentz has to read the defense and decide to either hand the ball off or throw the bubble screen to Samuel. The Jags appear to have three defenders over the bubble screen but just before the snap a defender drops back deep. That leaves them with two defenders over the three receivers to that side, which tells Wentz to pull the ball and throw to Samuel. Samuel receives the ball with two solid blockers ahead of him. Dax Milne picks up the initial block while tight end John Bates gets out in front of Samuel to lead the way. Samuel initially follows his blocks to the sideline, but once that path closes, he works back inside to find extra yards. He’s able to make another defender miss a tackle in the open field before showing some physicality at the end of the run as he manages to pick up the first down.
Samuel’s ability to cut sharply and change direction at speed makes him a great candidate to run pivot and return routes that start working one way before breaking back in the opposite direction. Scott Turner got creative in finding ways to use Samuel in this fashion.
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