Carolina Panthers: Rising star, breakout player, rebound player, and more

Needs to Rebound: Curtis Samuel, WR

Curtis Samuel needs to rebound and have a great year in 2018. After getting injured under the Monday Night Football lights in November, he needs to have a strong season in order to make an impact on this team.

Samuel played in spurts in the 2017 season. His first reception of the fall came against the Buffalo Bills on September 17 in a game where he tallied two catches for seven yards. He followed that performance up with a two-catch, five-yard performance against the New Orleans Saints. It is worth noting that he busted off a 31-yard run as he was able to showcase his speed.

Samuel would go onto record several games of minimal production, although he did play a hand in the Carolina Panthers 20-17 win over the Atlanta Falcons on November 5. He notched five catches for 23 yards and rushed for 14, again showcasing his speed and skillset. However, the Miami game was the highlight of his season production-wise and one has to wonder what his final numbers would have been if not for the injury.

For the season, he tallied 15 catches for 115 yards.

With the depth the Carolina Panthers have at wide out now, Samuel needs to rebound in 2018. There is now enough depth at the position where he can be easily replaced if he is not performing. Although there is potential on the part of Samuel, he needs to rebound and put it all together.