Curtis Samuel Injury Update Solidifies Week 16 Fantasy Outlook

Carolina Panthers receiver Curtis Samuel is expected to play against the Indianapolis Colts after showing up on the injury report during the week.

Samuel was a limited participant in practice throughout the week, but he should be available for the Will Grier's first NFL start.

Curtis Samuel Fantasy Outlook

Outside of Christian McCaffrey and D.J. Moore, the Panthers offense has struggled this year, leading to an unsightly 5-9 record. McCaffrey and Moore are must-starts this week, but Samuel has had an up-and-down season, averaging 42.6 yards and 6.9 targets per game.

Samuel has only recorded more than 35 receiving yards once since Week 10 and hasn't received as much attention in the offense of late. He's only averaging 6.2 yards per target. While he's managed to stay relevant with a touchdown in two of his last three games, he doesn't have the volume to be anything more than a low-end WR3.

Having the unproven Grier under center for the Panthers could break either way for Samuel. The Panthers could choose to run their offense through McCaffrey, or they could let Grier, a prolific passer in college, air it out against a Colts defense that ranks No. 17 in Football Outsiders' pass defense DVOA metric.

However, the important point for Samuel owners is that he will be on the field. He does not crack the top 36 at WR in our Week 16 fantasy rankings for PPR or standard scoring, but he could still be a viable FLEX play for owners who are looking for a player to start as they make a last-ditch effort to win their fantasy championship.

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Tristan Jung is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Tristan Jung also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username tristan1117. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.