Where Bills WR Curtis Samuel ranks among the fastest players in the NFL

Few NFL players enter a more advantageous situation than wide receiver Curtis Samuel.

The 27-year-old, who signed a three-year contract with the Buffalo Bills during the 2024 NFL offseason, has long been considered one of the league’s most talented, yet untapped weapons – his abilities are undeniable, but he, for various reasons, simply hasn’t found himself in situations conducive to consistent production. Whether it was poor quarterback play, mismanaged offenses, or a combination of the two, opportune circumstances weren’t often afforded Samuel throughout his seven-year career .

That looks set to change during the 2024 campaign, as he’s set to pair with the best quarterback he’s ever played with in a blue-chip Josh Allen. He also reunites with offensive coordinator Joe Brady, who worked with Samuel as the Carolina Panthers’ offensive play-caller in 2020; The versatile all-arounder put up career numbers that year, setting highs in receiving and rushing yards with 851 and 200, respectively. Samuel also appears to be an important contributor in a Buffalo receiving corps that lost Stefon Diggs and Gabriel Davis in the offseason – plenty of targets will come his way.

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He’s undeniably talented, he’s running a familiar offense, and he’s about to catch a ton of passes from one of the best quarterbacks in football. If you haven’t purchased Samuel stock yet, you may want to invest.

What makes Samuel so intriguing as a player is his unique skillset and versatility; The 5-foot-11 receiver was recruited out of high school as a four-star running back, logging significant snaps at both receivers and in the backfield throughout his three-year stint at Ohio State. While the vast majority of his snaps have been received by receivers in the NFL, he has seen time as a running back, recording a career-high 70 snaps on the field under Brady in 2020, according to PFF.

Samuel’s speed is what allows him to excel as an all-around chess piece as opposed to a traditional wide player; he ran a 4.31-second 40-yard dash at the 2017 NFL Scouting Combine. According to Marcus Mosher of the 33rd team, this time the receiver is the 19th fastest player in the NFL.

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“Few players are faster with the ball in their hands than Curtis Samuel. The 2017 draft pick ran a blistering 4.31 40-yard dash out of Ohio State at 196 pounds,” Mosher wrote in a recent article ranking the 25 fastest players in the NFL. “He hasn’t always been in a situation where a team can use his speed, but that could change in 2024 now that he’s with Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills.”

The list is not simply a compilation of testing times, but rather a combination of 40-yard dash times and game speeds determined by NFL Next Gen statistics. Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, for example, ranks above Samuel on the list; he ran a 4.39-second 40-yard dash during the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, but Next Gen Stats reports he reached a top speed of 22.1 miles per hour during a 2021 game with the New England Patriots. Mosher identifies Kansas City Chiefs rookie Xavier Worthy, Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill and Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf as the fastest players in the NFL.

Buffalo’s offense hasn’t deployed a player with speed comparable to Samuel’s in quite some time, and with Allen leading the aerial attack, fireworks are likely afoot. It will be interesting to see Brady cooking with his new colleague.