Why Kam Curl should be next Commander extended

Breaking down safety Kam Curl and why he should be a priority for the Commanders to extend next offseason

After getting a contract extension done for Terry McLaurin, the Washington Commanders can look ahead to the next group of players they’ll have to consider signing to extensions. Daron Payne is out of contract next year and will be the most immediate player needing sorting out, but others like Montez Sweat will also be eligible for long term extensions. One of the under the radar contracts that should be high on the priority list is that of safety Kam Curl. 

Curl slipped to the seventh-round back in 2020, but managed to carve out a role for himself in the now famous buffalo nickel role early in his rookie year. Since then, he’s taken over for Landon Collins at strong safety and is now one of the Commanders best and most consistent players on the defensive side of the ball. He’s under contract through the 2023 season, but is eligible for a new contract next summer. Here’s why the Commanders should be thinking about locking him down as soon as possible.

Curl is a very well-rounded player at safety. There are lots of different roles and responsibilities that safeties can take on, including playing deep, rotating over the slot, matching tight ends and running backs man-to-man, sitting in underneath zones, working in the box as the extra run defender and even rushing the passer as an extra blitzer. Curl is capable of performing just about all of these tasks to a high level. 

As a run defender, Curl is excellent. He understands how he needs to fit the run from different roles within the defense. He can be the strong safety in the box, the buffalo nickel on the edge or even a dime linebacker, but regardless of the position and the scheme of the defense, he understands where he needs to be and shows an understanding of how to adjust his fit based on what other defenders are doing in front of him.

On this play, Curl drops down into the box as almost an extra linebacker. Washington only has one linebacker on the field in Cole Holcomb as they run their five defensive lineman package to try and help stop the run. Curl knows his gap as from his original alignment, but as the play progresses he notices the defensive end stunting inside the extra tight end. Curl can see that with the defensive end stunting inside, the back is likely to be forced to bounce his run outside, so Curl adjusts his fit to account for that and shifts outside. The back does bounce outside the defensive end where he’s then met by Curl, who makes the play.

Having such an understanding of run fits is a huge benefit for Washington because it means the Commanders can trust Curl to align in different spots and still fit the run well. Even when working from deep, Curl knows how to fit the run and make tackles.

Here against the Raiders, we see an outside zone run to the left. Curl aligns about 11 yards off the line of scrimmage to the right side of the offensive formation. As the ball is snapped, he quickly reads run and works up to the line to help the front defend it. From the end zone angle you can see Curl understanding the defender on the outside is playing for any potential bootleg, so Curl needs to work inside to account for a potential cutback. The runner does cut his run back and Curl is in the perfect position to make the tackle and keep the gain to a minimum. 

Curl is a very good run defender from the safety position, but so was Landon Collins. What sets Curl apart is his ability to cover as well as defend the run. Curl has developed his coverage skills in a way that makes him so versatile and a fit for any scheme. Early in the season last year, Washington attempted to play more man coverage, which often put Curl in some tough matchups. 

On this play, Curl aligns over tight end Kyle Pitts, who will probably develop into the best receiving tight end in the league before long. Washington uses pure man coverage, leaving Curl to try and guard Pitts on a deep over route. Curl isn’t necessarily perfect here, but he does a very good job of sticking with Pitts on a very hard route to cover. He attempts to jam Pitts off the line, but Pitts manages to release inside. Curl keeps tight to Pitts even as Pitts breaks his route over the middle. Curl sits on the back hip and is ready to undercut any throw. Quarterback Matt Ryan attempts the throw anyway and perhaps a perfect throw would have been completed, but from the end zone angle you can see that Curl was right there and in position to bat away any pass that wasn’t perfectly placed out in front of Pitts.

Curl’s role as the buffalo nickel early in the season often led him to covering slot receivers too.