When the Washington Commanders selected safety Kam Curl in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL draft, he was initially considered an afterthought. That’s often the case with seventh-round picks.
That was until training camp. It was clear early in training camp that Curl was a keeper. The 6-foot-2 rookie would play all 16 games for Washington, starting 11 and finishing with three interceptions, including a touchdown.
The arrow was pointing up for Curl. Washington found a seventh-round gem in the former Arkansas Razorback.
Curl followed up his next season by playing all but one game and making 14 starts. Curl’s impact was particularly felt in 2022 when he missed five games that season.
Former coach Ron Rivera and ex-defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio always stressed how important Curl was to the team. If Rivera had his way, he would’ve extended Curl after last season, but with the team for sale, those types of moves were on the backburner. Then, Josh Harris took over in July, and it appeared any lucrative extensions were shelved until after the 2023 season.
The 2023 season is over, and Curl is a free agent. And the Commanders will not be placing the dreaded franchise tag on Curl, either. The deadline passed on Tuesday, and Washington tagged no one.
Curiously, Curl took to X — formerly known as Twitter — shortly after the franchise tag deadline passed and posted the following message — or emoji.
✌🏾
— Kam Curl (@KCurl_2) March 5, 2024
Is that Curl saying goodbye to Washington? Or is that an emotional tweet?
It’s hard to tell. We know the Commanders would like to have Curl back, but the days of overvaluing their own are over under Adam Peters. That’s not a knock on Curl. He’s earned the right to be back. But Peters has an idea of what he is willing to pay, Curl’s value, and the players he already has on the roster.
What does that mean?
We’ll see next week.
The free-agent safety market is robust, even with tags applied to some of the better ones. Still, Curl will have a market. He is a good player. Will that market lead him back to Washington?
