WR · BUF · GWTTKB

Curtis Samuel — fantasy football 2026

Every game, every stat category, and what the board says. 3.52 points per game in 2025, an ADP of 219, usage worth 2.9.

29 years old · 9 seasons of experience · 2017 draft class

Updated 2026-08-16 · free, no account, no paywall
Every figure below comes from our database. Where a stat is not held, the row is absent rather than zero.
ADP 219
Consensus across 2 books, standard deviation 69.3, 98 picks between cheapest and priciest. Cheapest on sleeper, priciest on espn.
SLEEPER268
ESPN170
FFA667

Draft-room facts

Goes aroundRound 19, pick 3 in a 12-team draft
Positional rankWR174
ADP standard deviation69.3 picks

The offense he plays in, 2026

Buffalo Bills returns 3 of 6 continuity slots, replacing wr1, hc, oc. Josh Allen at quarterback, Joe Brady as head coach, Pete Carmichael Jr. calling it. The offense projects to 31.5 pass attempts a game at medium confidence and 29.2 rushes.

In: Kyle Allen (qb2), DJ Moore (wr1), Skyler Bell (wr4), Trent Sherfield (wr7). Out: Curtis Samuel (wr4).

The projected target split across the offense:

DJ Moore17.1%
Khalil Shakir16.8%
Dalton Kincaid14.4%
Keon Coleman11.7%
James Cook9.4%
Dawson Knox7.4%

Our written view on this offense in 2026

What the offense looks like: This is a high powered offense centered around Josh Allen & James Cook. Over the past few years, the Bills have struggled to surround Allen with the weapons he needs in the passsing game. Kincaid HAS NOT made the leap or returned his 1st round draft capital despite what people say. The move to get DJ Moore was very intentional & GM Brandon Beane believes Moore is a locked in WR1 for Buffalo. Shakir is going to be a strong contributor but the DJ Moore trade likely hurts his value.

Key additions: Bills traded a 2nd round pick for to Bears for WR DJ Moore & extended on 4 year deal. C Lloyd Cushenberry 1 year deal. G/C Austin Corbett from Panthers (starter). WR Trent Sherfield from Minnesota (depth).

Key departures: David Edwards (starting LG), WR Curtis Samuel was released. Back up QB Mitch Trubisky signed with the Titans.

Notes: The Bills fired Sean McDermott following their loss to Denver in the playoffs in 2025. Joe Brady (standout OC) was promoted to HCThe Keon Coleman breakout may not ever happen. Bills traded for DJ Moore from Bears & under contract for 4 years. Large opportunity to emerge as main pass catcher in offense. Shakir reliable but no true ceiling yet. Allen 30 but still elite. Bills draft Skyler Bell WR from UConn 6 foor 192 LB 4.40 second 40 yard dash. Large opportunity for Bell in long run. Kincaid health remains a question. Opted to not get PCL surgery AGAIN & new HC Joe Brady says they will manage pain throughout 2026. James Cook will continue to produce as a top 10 PPR fantasy back IF he stays healthy. Very underrated runner.

How the volume number was reached: Same QB Josh Allen returning — anchor to 2025 actuals (29.1 att/g); Regressed 53% toward league mean 33.5, floored at 30 → 31.5 att/g; New OC Pete Carmichael Jr. — pass rate and tempo may shift; New HC Joe Brady.

Offensive environment: BUF rates 26.9 against a league average of 23, 3.9 points above it on opponent-adjusted least squares (multi-capture merge).

2026 schedule

Opponent-adjusted pass defense faced, against 2025 ratings. Positive is an easier slate.

Full season-2.3 · harder
Weeks 1–6-4.4 · harder
Weeks 12–17-1.6 · harder
Fantasy playoffs (15–17)+3.2 · easier

Read this narrowly. Our own testing found that season-long strength of schedule does not survive as a draft input — defensive quality is among the least stable team properties year to year, and a preseason slate is built on last year's identities. The playoff-weeks column is the only one we would let break a tie, and even then it is a tiebreaker rather than a reason. The finding.

Dynasty context not redraft

Everything in this section is about his dynasty trade value — what he is worth as a long-term asset in the trade market. It is not a forecast of his 2026 fantasy scoring. A player can be a fine redraft pick while his dynasty value falls, and the reverse. The redraft read is above; this is a different question with a different answer.

Where he sits in the dynasty value cycle

His dynasty value has moved -39% over the last twelve months. The market cycle classifies him as post-crash. The base rate that applies: after a -25% crash, WRs recover only 15% of the time (keep falling 85%).

For context on how long this lasts at the position: the average career at his position produces 2.1 elite seasons and 2.6 startable seasons.

The five most similar seasons, and what their dynasty value did next

Matched on production profile — production-driven (pedigree ignored). The last column is how that player’s dynasty value moved the following year — a market outcome, not a scoring one.

PlayerSeasonTheir PPGSimilarityNext year
Zay Jones20242.775%+13.2%
Nelson Agholor20243.874%-7.7%
JuJu Smith-Schuster20244.870%+0.1%
Josh Reynolds20244.865%-12.7%
Nelson Agholor20236.162%+25.4%

Of the 5 with a following season on record, 2 gained value, 2 lost it and 1 held roughly flat.

Four years of dynasty value

02,0004,000202120222023202420252026
Monthly superflex value, 2020-04 to 2026-07. Down 75% across the series, peaking at 4,469.

The player

Draft capital and athletic profile

Drafted2017, round 2, pick 40 by CAR
CollegeOhio St.
Age at draft21
Height5′11″
Weight196 lb
40-yard dash4.31s
Vertical37″
Broad jump119″
3-cone7.09s
Shuttle4.33s

Availability and volatility

Career PPR per game9.2
Week-to-week variation0.8
Boom rate23.6%
Bust rate34.5%
Games missed per season1.5
Injury historyGroin, Hamstring, Toe, Pectoral, Elbow
Correlation between his posted line and his actual score-0.21

That correlation is how closely the books’ posted line tracked what he actually scored, week to week. A higher number means the market has him figured out and there is less to exploit; a lower one means his weeks are harder to price.

Injury type matters more than games missed. Measured across our injury database, knee and foot returns stay below a player’s pre-injury baseline for all three of the first games back, while hamstring returns over-recover by the third.

The record, season by season

2025 · BUF · 6 games

His best game was Week 5 against NE — 10.6 PPR on 2 targets and a 6.7% target share, in a game that finished 20-23. His worst was Week 8 against CAR at 0, on 0 targets, final score 40-9. Across 6 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 5 times.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 2.9 points per game. He scored 3.52, 8.8% above it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
4NO31-191.912909.1%34%
5NE20-2310.6222616.7%49%
8CAR40-9000000%30%
9KC28-211.611604%41%
10MIA13-303.1112102.6%35%
11TB44-323.92319010%50%

Production

Receptions7
Targets9
Receiving yards81
Touchdowns1
Points per game3.52
Yards per target9
Catch rate77.78%

Role

Snap share39.83%
Target share5.4%
Air-yards share8.63%
WOPR0.14
RACR1.03

Efficiency

Average depth of target16.1
Yards after catch per reception3.9
Yards before catch per reception7.7
Total YAC27
Broken tackles0
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted141.2
Receiving EPA per game1.47

Scoring position

Red-zone targets3
Red-zone target share3.6%
End-zone target share0%
Expected receiving TDs0.59
Actual receiving TDs1
Receiving TD luck0.41

Who else ate

The offense threw it 495 times. 1 team-mate cleared the competing-target threshold.

Khalil Shakir19.83%
Keon Coleman12.32%
Dawson Knox10.23%
Dalton Kincaid10.23%
James Cook8.35%
Josh Palmer7.72%

Blowouts against close games

2 of his 6 games were blowouts, 14.7% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 1.55 in those and 6.1 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2024 · BUF · 14 games

His best game was Week 11 against KC — 16.8 PPR on 6 targets and a 15.8% target share, in a game that finished 30-21. His worst was Week 9 against MIA at 0, on 1 targets, final score 30-27. Across 14 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 12 times. In the 7 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 4.1; in the 7 decided by more, 5. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 5.6 points per game. He scored 4.55, 6.2% below it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1ARI34-283.5221508.7%27%
2MIA31-101.3123011.1%27%
3JAX47-105.23322010%27%
4BAL10-353.522807.4%37%
5HOU20-230.9140013.8%56%
6NYJ23-207.43444017.4%36%
7TEN34-10001003.1%4%
9MIA30-27001002.8%26%
10IND30-207.54835022.9%89%
11KC30-2116.85658115.8%60%
13SF35-100.700000%38%
14LA42-443.6231508.1%60%
15DET48-421.112106.3%27%
18NE16-2312.27852025.8%67%

Production

Receptions31
Targets46
Receiving yards253
Carries5
Rushing yards14
Touchdowns1
Points per game4.55
Yards per target5.5
Catch rate67.39%
Yards per carry2.8

Role

Snap share41.5%
Target share10.94%
Air-yards share6.66%
WOPR0.211
RACR2.818

Efficiency

Average depth of target4.6
Yards after catch per reception5.2
Yards before catch per reception3
Total YAC160
Broken tackles1
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted79.3
Receiving EPA per game-0.74
Rushing EPA per game-0.14

Scoring position

Red-zone targets7
Red-zone target share9.7%
End-zone target share9.4%
Red-zone carry share0.7%
Expected receiving TDs1.84
Actual receiving TDs2
Receiving TD luck0.16
Expected rushing TDs0.14

Who else ate

The offense threw it 520 times. He took 9.29% of the targets. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Khalil Shakir20.2%
Dalton Kincaid15.15%
Keon Coleman11.52%
Mack Hollins10.1%
Curtis Samuel 9.29%
James Cook7.68%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Josh Allen13383.965.299.8%
Mitchell Trubisky1812.26.525.8%

Blowouts against close games

5 of his 14 games were blowouts, 16.8% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 2.14 in those and 4.1 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2023 · WAS · 16 games

His best game was Week 15 against LA — 21.1 PPR on 9 targets and a 26.5% target share, in a game that finished 20-28. His worst was Week 11 against NYG at 1.5, on 2 targets, final score 19-31. Across 16 games he cleared 20 points 1 time and came in under 8 points 9 times. In the 9 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 9.9; in the 7 decided by more, 9.7. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 9.8 points per game. He scored 9.83, 0.5% above it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1ARI20-16115554017.2%65%
2DEN35-336.2331908.8%62%
3BUF3-377.42454013.8%74%
4PHI31-3418.27851120.5%69%
5CHI20-4018.56765114.6%70%
6ATL24-1614.24442119%63%
7NYG7-146.54825022.2%55%
8PHI31-386.2442207.8%19%
10SEA26-292.6266014.3%51%
11NYG19-311.512504.8%16%
12DAL10-4519912100027.3%55%
13MIA15-4510.54565022.7%58%
15LA20-2821.15941226.5%72%
16NYJ28-3031616018.8%66%
17SF10-276.33433015.4%50%
18DAL10-3852415014.3%57%

Production

Receptions62
Targets91
Receiving yards613
Carries7
Rushing yards39
Touchdowns5
Points per game9.83
Yards per target6.74
Catch rate68.13%
Yards per carry5.57

Role

Snap share56.38%
Target share16.75%
Air-yards share14.64%
WOPR0.354
RACR2.274

Efficiency

Average depth of target6.6
Yards after catch per reception4.2
Yards before catch per reception5.7
Total YAC260
Broken tackles4
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted83.3
Receiving EPA per game0.37
Rushing EPA per game0.24

Scoring position

Red-zone targets16
Red-zone target share23.2%
End-zone target share24.2%
Red-zone carry share7%
Goal-line carry share5.6%
Expected receiving TDs4.12
Actual receiving TDs4
Receiving TD luck-0.12
Expected rushing TDs0.57

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game44 of 51
Yards per target45 of 51
Target share46 of 51
Air-yards share49 of 51

Who else ate

The offense threw it 636 times. He took 15.17% of the targets. 1 team-mate cleared the competing-target threshold.

Terry McLaurin22%
Curtis Samuel 15.17%
Jahan Dotson13.83%
Logan Thomas13%
Antonio Gibson9.83%
Brian Robinson7.17%

Blowouts against close games

6 of his 16 games were blowouts, 42.4% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 11.12 in those and 9.89 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

2022 · WAS · 17 games

His best game was Week 2 against DET — 22.9 PPR on 9 targets and a 20.5% target share, in a game that finished 27-36. His worst was Week 18 against DAL at 0.4, on 1 targets, final score 26-6. Across 17 games he cleared 20 points 1 time and came in under 8 points 7 times. In the 9 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 10.9; in the 8 decided by more, 9.8. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 9.2 points per game. He scored 10.37, 12.2% above it. The engine classified the season as lucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1JAX28-2219.281155417126.8%71%
2DET27-3622.97978121120.5%89%
3PHI8-2413.171048313023.8%83%
4DAL10-257.8473800017.5%78%
5TEN17-2112.2686200021.6%90%
6CHI12-72.625600022.7%86%
7GB23-2112.95853526025%77%
8IND17-1610.93450429013.3%74%
9MIN17-2017.13465116115.4%75%
10PHI32-2162428412016%64%
11HOU23-109.8121021818.7%60%
12ATL19-131.300041300%60%
13NYG20-2014.66763323017.5%66%
15NYG12-207.5354451018.5%59%
16SF20-3716.4555212114.7%66%
17CLE10-241.61260007.1%64%
18DAL26-60.411-21-405.6%53%

Production

Receptions64
Targets92
Receiving yards656
Carries38
Rushing yards187
Touchdowns5
Points per game10.37
Yards per target7.13
Catch rate69.57%
Yards per carry4.92

Role

Snap share71.47%
Target share16.16%
Air-yards share13.65%
WOPR0.338
RACR1.055

Efficiency

Average depth of target6.7
Yards after catch per reception4.5
Yards before catch per reception5.7
Total YAC289
Broken tackles8
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted95.2
Receiving EPA per game1.46
Rushing EPA per game-0.13

Scoring position

Red-zone targets11
Red-zone target share17.7%
End-zone target share9.1%
Red-zone carry share8.6%
Expected receiving TDs3.23
Actual receiving TDs3
Receiving TD luck-0.23
Expected rushing TDs0.47

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game43 of 51
Yards per target42 of 51
Target share45 of 51
Air-yards share50 of 51

Who else ate

The offense threw it 554 times. He took 17.33% of the targets. 1 team-mate cleared the competing-target threshold.

Terry McLaurin22.6%
Curtis Samuel 17.33%
Logan Thomas11.49%
Jahan Dotson11.49%
Antonio Gibson10.92%
J.D. McKissic7.53%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 3 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Taylor Heinicke93910.729.3614.34%
Carson Wentz75211.345.6320%
Sam Howell110.4-25.6%

Blowouts against close games

2 of his 17 games were blowouts, 9.5% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 8.4 in those and 10.92 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2021 · WAS · 5 games

His best game was Week 4 against ATL — 5.9 PPR on 4 targets and a 12.1% target share, in a game that finished 34-30. His worst was Week 14 against DAL at 0, on 2 targets, final score 20-27. Across 5 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 5 times.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 3.1 points per game. He scored 1.96, 37.2% below it. The engine classified the season as very_unlucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
4ATL34-305.94419012.1%37%
5NO22-330.801002.4%6%
12SEA17-152.311902.9%24%
13LV17-150.811-103.3%30%
14DAL20-27002006.1%21%

Production

Receptions6
Targets9
Receiving yards27
Carries4
Rushing yards11
Touchdowns0
Points per game1.96
Yards per target3
Catch rate66.67%
Yards per carry2.75

Role

Snap share23.6%
Target share5.36%
Air-yards share0.68%
WOPR0.084
RACR0

Efficiency

Average depth of target2.3
Yards after catch per reception6.7
Yards before catch per reception-2.2
Total YAC40
Broken tackles0
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted30.6
Receiving EPA per game-0.01
Rushing EPA per game-0.38

Scoring position

Red-zone targets1
Red-zone target share1.7%
End-zone target share0%
Expected receiving TDs0.14
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-0.14

Who else ate

The offense threw it 550 times. 1 team-mate cleared the competing-target threshold.

Terry McLaurin24.39%
Adam Humphries11.63%
J.D. McKissic9.94%
Antonio Gibson9.76%
Ricky Seals-Jones9.19%
DeAndre Carter8.26%

2020 · CAR · 15 games

His best game was Week 9 against KC — 26.8 PPR on 9 targets and a 20.5% target share, in a game that finished 31-33. His worst was Week 10 against TB at 4.2, on 5 targets, final score 23-46. Across 15 games he cleared 20 points 4 times and came in under 8 points 3 times. In the 10 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 15.4; in the 5 decided by more, 11.7. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 11.7 points per game. He scored 14.14, 21.3% above it. The engine classified the season as lucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1LV30-349.3583815023.5%75%
2TB17-315.9221342605%70%
3LAC21-169.2444547014.8%65%
4ARI31-217.834512-3011.1%47%
5ATL23-1611.45536428014.7%74%
7NO24-2717.3664815122.2%48%
8ATL17-2521.44531323219.2%76%
9KC31-3326.899105313120.5%72%
10TB23-464.235834017.9%71%
11DET20-021.48107014128.6%68%
12MIN27-2812.7557215015.6%65%
14DEN27-32167968222023.1%79%
15GB16-248.8494226026.5%84%
16WAS20-1320.855106752017.9%57%
17NO7-3319.171111833030.6%71%

Production

Receptions77
Targets97
Receiving yards851
Carries41
Rushing yards200
Touchdowns5
Points per game14.14
Yards per target8.77
Catch rate79.38%
Yards per carry4.88

Role

Snap share68.13%
Target share19.41%
Air-yards share17.99%
WOPR0.417
RACR1.417

Efficiency

Average depth of target7.3
Yards after catch per reception4.2
Yards before catch per reception6.9
Total YAC320
Broken tackles4
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted109.2
Receiving EPA per game2.52
Rushing EPA per game-0.24

Scoring position

Red-zone targets12
Red-zone target share20%
End-zone target share11.8%
Red-zone carry share12.2%
Goal-line carry share4.3%
Expected receiving TDs2.59
Actual receiving TDs2
Receiving TD luck-0.59
Expected rushing TDs1.12

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game24 of 51
Yards per target19 of 51
Target share35 of 51
Air-yards share48 of 51

Who else ate

The offense threw it 549 times. He took 18.44% of the targets. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Robbie Chosen25.86%
D.J. Moore22.43%
Curtis Samuel 18.44%
Mike Davis13.31%
Ian Thomas5.89%
Christian McCaffrey3.61%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Teddy Bridgewater148713.628.9818.76%
P.J. Walker11021.4728.6%

Blowouts against close games

3 of his 15 games were blowouts, 21.1% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 14.9 in those and 15.37 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

Ask the Coach about Curtis Samuel →
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