Bills Central

Bills QB Josh Allen says versatile WR 'sticks out' to him at training camp

Buffalo Bills veteran wide receiver Curtis Samuel has already caught Josh Allen's eye at training camp.

Kyle Silagyi

Bills wide receiver Curtis Samuel puts out the stiff arm.
Bills wide receiver Curtis Samuel puts out the stiff arm. / Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK
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In a league as thoroughly talented throughout as the NFL, there are a handful of players who stick out for one of a myriad of reasons, whether it be a particular skill, their role, or a combination of a bevy of other factors.

Guys like Tyreek Hill, Deebo Samuel, and Christian McCaffrey are distinct amongst their colleagues thanks to the uniqueness of their skill sets and the effectiveness with which their coaching staffs feature them. Finding one of these players, a person who visibly ‘sticks out’ amongst the pack and can thrive in a unique role, is incredibly difficult; very rarely does a team back into having a premier offensive threat.

It looks as though the Buffalo Bills may have done so, however.

The team inked veteran wide receiver Curtis Samuel to a three-year deal in the 2024 offseason, a signing that, at the time, wasn’t necessarily met with a wave of national press. The 27-year-old—who has never usurped 900 receiving yards in a single season—was expected to serve as a complementary piece in an offense still headlined by perennial Pro Bowler Stefon Diggs; expectations shifted when Buffalo dealt Diggs to the Houston Texans in early April.

Related: 'Bright future' for Bills fifth-round rookie who led NCAA FBS in sacks

Samuel quickly went from ‘auxiliary weapon’ to ‘potentially prominent playmaker,’ a role that, upon further inspection, may not be too steep of an ask for the now eighth-year player; the former second-round draft pick is demonstrably talented, but he’s been plagued by poor quarterback play and inconsistent offensive coaching staffs throughout his entire professional career. The offensive coordinator whom Samuel found the most success under was Joe Brady, who allowed the wide receiver to total a career-high 1,051 scrimmage yards as an offensive chesspiece with the Carolina Panthers in the 2020 NFL season; the Bills hired Brady as their full-time offensive coordinator in January.

Reunited with a coordinator who knows how to get the most out of him (and paired with an otherworldly signal caller in Josh Allen), there’s reason to believe that Samuel could construct a career year in his age-28 season. Brady expressed early belief that the pass-catcher would do “a little bit of everything” in Buffalo’s offense, and Samuel has certainly done so through the first week of the team’s 2024 training camp, taking snaps—and finding consistent success—from out wide, in the slot and the backfield. Allen has taken notice of the uniqueness of Samuel’s role and the proficiency with which he’s played it, singling him out while talking about the team’s revamped receiving corps during a recent appearance on Up & Adams with Kay Adams. 

Curtis Samuel
Bills wide receiver Curtis Samuel pulls in a deep ball at the back of the end zone during the opening day of Buffalo Bills training camp at St. John Fisher University Wednesday, July 24, 2024. / Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK

“I don’t know if we really have a No. 1 or No. 2,” Allen said. “I think we have a group of guys that are just finding ways to get open and they’re doing their job. They understand their roles within each concept. Curtis Samuel is a guy that sticks out to me, using his speed. He’s kind of a gadget guy, you can place him in the backfield. I’m sure you saw some of that today. He scored a touchdown running the ball. 

“Mack Hollins bringing the juice, drafting a guy like Keon, guys that can go up and get the ball. MVS, a guy like Tyrell Shavers who has been in the system for a year now, he was on the [practice] squad last year [and] he’s come to play. A lot of guys are making plays all over the field right now and they’re working really hard.”

Samuel’s positional distribution under Brady was the most diverse of his professional career by a considerable margin; he took 399 snaps from the slot, 177 from out wide, and 70 from the backfield in the 2020 campaign. His usage figures to be as—if not more—unique in Orchard Park this fall, and the fact that he’s already catching the eye of his quarterback should only bode well for his potential production.

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Kyle Silagyi
KYLE SILAGYI

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