Philadelphia Eagles Draft: 5 Combine Prospects To Watch

Curtis Samuel, RB/WR, Ohio State

Some of the most interesting storylines in every NFL Combine are those of positional switches (read: Jabrill Peppers). The big one that will matter to Philadelphia this season? Ohio State running back turned wide receiver Curtis Samuel.

Samuel played more as a ‘weapon’ than anything else in Ohio State’s offense. He took snaps out of the wildcat, received traditional hand-offs, ran reverses, and aligned as both a boundary and slot WR. Given his frame (5’11, 195 lbs), slot receiver projects as his best position in an NFL offense.

When watching Samuel’s tape for a wide receiver, it’s important to remember his lack of practice time at the position. While he regularly flashes the quick-twitch athleticism and route running of an NFL slot, his coverage diagnosis could go for some improvement. Furthermore, he rarely had to catch in traffic/through contact at Ohio State, and his hands betray him sometimes.

While the Combine won’t have him receiving in any sort of contact, he will have to run the gauntlet and catch passes while running routes with quarterbacks. Samuel’s stock can only go down, in my estimation. His athleticism and YAC ability surely makes scouts salivate as they watch his tape. But if he flashes poor hands during the Combine, teams could take a pass come draft day.

Some folks have likened Samuel to Kansas City WR Tyreek Hill, but I don’t know if Samuel has that sort of game-breaking speed (hey, watch his 40, too!). However, in Doug Pederson’s Andy Reid-esque offense, Samuel would likely serve a role similar to Hill’s. After cutting Josh Huff last year, the Eagles’ offense sorely lacked that dynamic element. Samuel could easily become the Philadelphia Eagles’ top option as a replacement, if he impresses at the Combine.