NFL analyst calls a Commanders star a fantasy 'smokescreen' to avoid

Pumping the Brakes on the Hype Train

"Smokescreen might not be the best description of my reaction here," Grant says about his take on the Washington duo. "I have no doubt Daniels and Samuel are getting more acquainted with one another on the field, especially with Terry McLaurin on the PUP list after requesting a trade. What I'm more skeptical of is how much it will translate to fantasy football."

Grant points out that fantasy enthusiasts can be hesitant to give up on a player after one great season, even if there are several less-than-stellar efforts that follow it.

To those doing that with Samuel this year, Grant says, "I wish you Godspeed."

His reasoning? "It's not that Samuel is a bad player," says Grant. "Quite the contrary. He's an excellent real-life footballer. He's a mediocre (at best) fantasy option."

This is where football and fantasy split. At the intersection of real-life impact and fantasy scoring lives players like Samuel. Guys who become critical contributors to their team's overall success, while not producing enough to carry the same weight on your roster.

The Case for Skepticism

In 2021, Grant references, Samuel produced nearly 2,000 yards of offense and scored a combined 14 touchdowns. He followed that up with a sub-900-yard effort that featured just five touchdowns, however, and then eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark again in 2022 while scoring 12 times.

All the while, Samuel was considered a critical member of the San Francisco 49ers' offense and earned praise in the media because of it. His popularity among fans also persisted, leading to many who drafted him in 2024 to fall disappointed by his 806 yards of total offense and four touchdowns.

While his yearly average is nine touchdowns and over 1,200 yards of offense, Samuel has only hit or eclipsed those numbers twice in six seasons.

The Counterpoint from Camp

That being said, we stand by our training camp observations of how impactful Samuel has been since linking up with Daniels, and the truth is there are still missed connections we've seen that should get better the more they get to work together.

And while Grant asserts, "a few connections during seven-on-seven drills shouldn't sway you into moving a receiver up your draft boards," he might be surprised to learn the Commanders don't do a lot of seven-on-seven sessions, and the majority of the hype you're hearing coming out of camp is from 11-on-11 drills.

Still, there is a grain of salt to be taken there as well, so don't fully discount Grant's concerns for your commitment based on practice reports. But then, unless you're playing in-season in weekly games, your draft is going to be completely based on predetermined opinions and practice reports.

Grant does leave the door open to backpedal if need be once the year gets underway, saying, "Perhaps Kliff Kingsbury figures out how to get the best out of Samuel. Or perhaps Samuel continues to be the Jenga piece for a real NFL team while remaining a fantasy enigma."