Redskins left tackle Chris Samuels, a fixture on the offensive line since arriving as a rookie in 2000, possibly has played his last down in D.C.
Per Adam Schefter of ESPN, Samuels will visit a specialist in Los Angeles regarding whether Samuels will be able to continue his career.
Samuels is not expected to play again this year, and Schefter says that some within the organization think that Samuels will never play again.
One source told Schefter that Samuels is privately saying that he plans to retire.
Samuels was the third overall pick in the 2000 draft, the second half of a back-to-back series of selections by the Redskins. With the second overall pick in 2000, the Redskins selected linebacker LaVar Arrington.
I’m a Chris Samuels fan, and I wish the best for him health-wise, and hate to see him lose his career early if indeed he wishes to continue playing.
That said, here is yet another wake up call (however futile) for the Redskins regarding the value of a healthy line. The cherry picking of free agents to serve as temporary band aids ain’t cutting it. Redskin brass needn’t look any further than within the division to see how well a solid o-line unit can impact a team (especially the Giants, those guys never get hurt it seems). Fans will be screaming for a new QB next April (and I might yet be one of them), but until they get the line right, they’ll always have issues.
And none of it makes sense, as the organization may be best known for offensive lineman.
Hope the next GM/coach/whoever realizes that.
Watch, they’ll still take another DB in the first round of the 2010 draft. Gotta love the Dan Snyder era.
I hope he can come back, you dont want to see no one career go down like that. Although it wasnt as bad looking as it, the injury starting to go down the road as Wanye Chrebet of the Jets
If he does retire, hopefully he would come back as our new O-Line coach when Joe B. retires.
It’s a shame, but the guy risks being in a wheel chair the rest of his life every time he hits someone.
Demarcus Ware identified Chris as the toughest tackle he faced.
This info is more than a week old. I thought I must have just missed it on here.
I wish Samuels the best.
Let the implosion of this once proud and meaningful franchise continue. As a fan, I must watch the inferno.
I wish Samuels the best and hope he’ll be fine.
But on the positive side, this will allow Vinny Cerato and Dan Snyder can draft another WR in this year’s draft to replace Samuels!!! Brilliant Front Office….Simply Brilliant!
Football is fun and all, but is it worth not being able to feel your junk? No, it isn’t. Best of luck to you, Chris.
As someone who lives in DC area, as much as I hate his team, I’ve always thought Chris handled himself with dignity and class (unlike so many others on his team, see: Portis, Clinton). He’s spoken after tough and embarrasing losses and played with horribly painful injuries. For the sake of his longterm health, I hope he does retire. I’m sorry he wasted his career w/that team. He’s a good guy that deserved to play for a better owner/organization.
Chris was actually a WR in high school before signing with Alabama. I want to say he had a neck injury his freshmen year there that allowed him to redshirt and put on weight and become a great O-lineman. Chris is a great guy and I have known him for many years. I ran into him during the preseason and he wanted my cell so he could keep in contact with me. The guy is a sincere man and truly is a great asset to the Redskins both on and off the field. Another Chris Samuels nugget: His brother Lawrence is the all time leading receiver in Arena football history. Get well Chris. Bama-Si-Phi!!
Thanks for the years of service, Chris. You’ve been a class act. HTTR.
Are you just recycling news that you’ve already reported on? You’ve had this story on the site already (at least once). Old news.
I wish Samuels the best and all, but once is enough.
Take the money & have a nice life! Blesses to be able to be forwarned about a life-threatening/life-changing injury in advance.
Thanks for giving it 150 percent on the football field, but most of all thanks for being a class act Good Luck Cris
Retire Chris. Don’t even consider returning unless it’s with a class organization with a legitimate chance to win.
Chris Samuels is the symbol of Dan Snyder and Vinnie Cerrato’s abysmal personnel decisions. Since the 2000 draft when Samuels was drafted, the Redskins have NOT picked an offensive lineman in the 1st or 2nd rounds of the draft. That’s 9 consecutive drafts of ignoring a position that is so critical to a football team’s success. All of the successful QBs in this league (Peyton, Brady, Favre, Eli etc.) all thrive due to great protection. We saw what happened when the Giants kicked Brady’s a.. in the super bowl. He was average looking and play uneasy the entire game. Yet Snyder doesn’t see the importance, and keeps bringing in over the hill veterans to plug the line. They do everything backwards. Every other team drafts O-Line and D-Line guys and allow them to grow into a cohesive units over time, and sign skill players to fill out the roster. Snyder does the opposite. He ignores the O line and draft skills players only, in the first 2 rounds.
Enjoy the rest of your life Chris and thanks for the great service.
I can see the August headlines now:
“JaMarcus Russell heads to D.C., No Linemen Necessary”
P.S. Chris, you were great for our team – you never let us down. Congratulations on leaving the Redskins at the perfect time. Peace.