Carolina Panthers Roster, Injury News 2017: Curtis Samuel to Undergo Ankle Surgery, Out for the Season
Carolina Panthers wide receiver Curtis Samuel's rookie season has officially come to an end.
The team has announced that Samuel will have to undergo surgery to repair the ligament damage in his left ankle and they will eventually put him on the injured reserve list.
The rookie wide receiver went down with the injury after safety Reshad Jones rolled over his left ankle while he was trying to catch a Cam Newton pass in the end zone in the third quarter of their 45–21 victory over the Miami Dolphins on Monday.
The X-rays came back negative after the game, but after undergoing an extensive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine the severity of the injury on Tuesday, it was revealed that he would have to undergo season-ending surgery.
Samuel will finish the season with 15 receptions for 115 yards and four carries for 64 yards.
Meanwhile, Panthers offensive coordinator Mike Shula has noted that Samuel has been playing better than ever before he got hurt.
"He had a couple of third-down conversions, and his awareness is becoming better and better as far as finding holes in the zones. He's doing a better job on releases — just all the little things on route running," he stated.
He also confirmed that Samuel will be replaced by a committee at wide receiver.
"It's kind of a collective effort," Shula said on Tuesday, via the Panthers' official website. "Is there anybody as fast as him? There are some guys on our team that would say yes. We're going to try hard to find ways to put guys in place for what they do best and then have them go do it," he continued.
Russell Shepard, Kaelin Clay and Brenton Bersin should see a significant uptick in minutes playing alongside veteran wide receiver Devin Funchess. Damiere Byrd is an option as well once he comes off the injured reserve list.
