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The Washington Commanders are keeping their plans for Deebo Samuel a closely guarded secret.
How they plan to use Deebo Samuel has been a hot topic of conversation involving the Washington Commanders this offseason, but so far at least, the team is keeping its intentions secret, despite the All-Pro wide receiver being one of the stars through the first week of training camp.
Samuel, acquired in a trade with the San Francisco 49ers this offseason, earned plaudits from Commanders.com Senior Writer Zach Selby. The latter described how “Samuel had the first explosive play of camp on Wednesday. He got a step on Tyler Owens down the sideline and caught an over-the-shoulder pass from Daniels for a touchdown. That basically set the tone for the rest of the week for Washington’s new wideout.”
That catch was highlighted by Monumental Sports Network’s Ethan Cadeaux.
A play like that is the result of Samuel having “dedicated much of his time to building chemistry with Daniels and learning Washington’s offense,” according to Selby.
What’s interesting is Selby’s note about how the veteran wideout has “made progress in both areas, and without giving too much away (the team prevents people from getting too specific with how players are used), the Commanders have taken advantage of Samuel’s versatility.”
That’s a tease about what’s possible for one of the most exciting and multi-faceted playmakers in the NFL in the system called by Commanders’ offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury.
Kliff Kingsbury Plan for Deebo Samuel Has Exciting Possibilities
Samuel has already shared his enthusiasm for getting up to speed with what the Commanders do on offense. His upbeat mentality is understandable after joining a team led by the most promising young quarterback in football, Jayden Daniels.
Last season’s NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year is a dual-threat game-breaker whose versatility will mesh well with the many ways Samuel can attack defenses. Those ways are well known, including the 29-year-old’s ability to double up as a running back.
The 49ers took full advantage of Samuel’s rushing skills with plays like this counter run against the Dallas Cowboys from the 2022 playoffs, highlighted by Nate Tice.
While the Niners had a myriad of ways to move Samuel around and have him stress both phases of defenses, it’s less clear how Kingsbury will take advantage of the deluxe hybrid. It’s still exciting to consider, based on how creative Kingsbury got with last season’s offense.
Anticipating heavy use of screens and motion is easy enough, given Samuel’s past. Daniels is already intrigued by how glorified long handoffs to Samuel, one of the league’s most dynamic after-catch specialists, can make his job easier as a passer.
Yet, Kingsbury is likely to have more than the usual in store for Samuel during the rest of camp. Misdirection and gadgetry can become watchwords of Washington’s offense because Samuel isn’t the only roving run-and-catch weapon at Kingsbury’s disposal.
Commanders Have Other ‘WideBack’ Candidates
Samuel’s running and receiving double act, particularly during his banner campaign of 2021, helped coin the term “wideback,” given to a wideout who’s almost equally effective from the backfield.
This sub-section of position groups may be fronted by Samuel, but the Commanders have other viable candidates. They include second-year wide receiver Luke McCaffrey, a converted quarterback targeting a breakout this season.
McCaffrey will fight for reps with 2025 NFL draft fourth-round pick Jaylin Lane. He’s an electric speedster who can also gash defenses on the ground and through the air.
All of the moving parts at Kingsbury’s disposal can make the Commanders the most unpredictable offense in the NFL. Especially when the secrets of their Samuel plan are revealed.
James Dudko covers the New York Giants, Washington Commanders, New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens for Heavy.com. He has covered the NFL and world soccer since 2011, with bylines at FanSided, Prime Time Sports Talk and Bleacher Report before joining Heavy in 2021. More about James Dudko
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