LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. -- The Washington Football Team announced today that they have signed wide receiver Curtis Samuel. Terms of the deals were not disclosed.
Samuel (5-11, 195) is entering his fifth NFL season after originally being selected by the Carolina Panthers in the second round (40th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft. He has appeared in 53 career games with 32 starts over four seasons with Carolina.
Samuel has amassed 185 receptions for 2,087 yards and 14 touchdowns in his career. He has also added 72 rushes for 478 yards and five touchdowns.
In 2020, Samuel played in 15 games with five starts. He recorded 77 receptions for 851 yards and three touchdowns. He also registered 41 rushes for 200 yards and two scores. His 77 receptions, 851 receiving yards, 41 rush attempts, 200 rushing yards and 1,051 scrimmage yards were all career-highs. His 77 receptions came on 97 targets, good for a 79.4% reception percentage. It was the second-highest by any wide receiver this past season (among qualifiers).
In 2019, Samuel recorded 54 receptions for 627 receiving yards and a team-leading six receiving touchdowns. He also recorded 130 yards rushing and one rushing touchdown.
Samuel played in 13 games with eight starts in 2018, tallying 39 receptions for 494 receiving yards and eight rushes for 84 rushing yards. He also accumulated 209 kick return yards and scored seven touchdowns on the year, five receiving and two rushing. Samuel tallied a rushing and receiving touchdown against Tampa Bay (11/4/18), becoming the first Panthers wide receiver to do both in the same game since Keyshawn Johnson in 2006.
In 2017, Samuel played in nine games with four starts before ending the season on injured reserve with an ankle injury. He tallied 115 yards receiving, 64 yards rushing and 220 yards of kickoff returns.
In college, Samuel played in 40 games with 13 starts at Ohio State. He entered the NFL following his junior season. In three seasons, Samuel totaled 3,007 all-purpose yards and is the only player in school history with 1,000-career rushing and receiving yards. In all, Samuel rushed for 1,286 yards and 15 touchdowns on 172 attempts. He posted 107 receptions for 1,249 yards and nine touchdowns. He was named a First-team All-American in 2016.
Samuel was born on August 11, 1996 and attended Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, N.Y.
