Deebo Samuels is not happy with his role in the San Francisco 49ers

While it was a shock when the 49ers receiver requested a trade, as details about the scenario emerge his position is becoming more and more understandable.

Exactly why does Deebo Samuel want to leave the 49ers?

On Wednesday gone, the San Francisco 49ers received a trade request from their star receiver Deebo Samuel and both the franchise and the wider league felt the reverberations. With no specific reasons offered as to why Samuel wanted out, many began to speculate that it was - as is normally the case - about money or a lack there of. Indeed, in most cases when a player who is seemingly doing well makes a sudden trade request, it seldom comes down to anything other than a contractual dispute, however, according to reports, that isn’t quite the case here.

As it’s understood, the 49ers don’t have any problem paying Samuel whatever he wants, the problem is that the player himself is after something apart from financial gains. What’s more is that Samuel has actually cut off all communication with the franchise regarding his contract. Why then did Samuel demand a trade? As per reports, it comes down to an on-field issue which is to say the star receiver does not like the way in which he has been utilized in San Francisco.

Is Deebo Samuel a victim of his own success?

To put it mildly, the 2021 season was historic for Deebo Samuel. Playing as both wide receiver and running back, the Pro Bowler hauled in an incredible 1,405 yards and six touchdowns via passes received, while posting 365 yards and eight touchdowns with his running game. On the basis of his efforts, Samuel became just the third player in the NFL history to finish a season with at least 1,000 receiving yards along with at least five receiving touchdowns and five rushing touchdowns. Not enough? With his 1,770 scrimmage yards, Samuel was responsible for 28% of the 49ers’ offensive total, which - in case you were wondering - was the fourth-highest percentage by any player in the league.

This, however, brings us to the crux of the matter which appears to be a question of longevity. According to reports, Samuel simply isn’t happy with the quantity of hits that he has sustained as a utility player. The player himself recently alluded to the fact when he stated that he isn’t “comfortable” with the way the 49ers are using him. For context, it should be noted that from Week 10 forwards, Samuel’s usage at RB increased drastically, when he had five carries for 36 yards and a touchdown in a 31-10 win over the Rams. From there he would go on to account for more than 21% of the 49ers’ offensive snaps from the backfield across their final 11 games - playoffs included - according to a report. If you’re wondering how that matches up with previous seasons, Samuel had only lined up at running back for 2.1% of the offensive snaps in his entire career before that fateful Week 10 game.

What’s the solution for Deebo Samuel?

Having seen the focus increasingly placed on his prowess at running back, Samuel saw his numbers as a receiver drop over the final 11 games of the season. To be precise, Samuel caught five or more passes in seven of San Francisco’s first eight games in 2021, compared with the final eight games of last season, playoffs included, in which he only caught five or more passes in two of them. As per Tom Pelissero’s report, Samuel’s would prefer to get back to just being a wide receiver. “Deebo Samuel wants to be a receiver and not a receiver-slash-running back,” Pelissero said. “His rushing attempts were significantly up last season from where they’ve been in the past. We all know that he’s a really, really physical player, but there probably are some concerns here about longevity.” While it is indeed an external opinion, further weight was added to the conversation when former NFL player Su’a Cravens tweeted about Samuels, highlighting the idea that at this rate 49ers star won’t last long in the league if he continues to be used across the two positions.

Where is Deebo Samuel at right now?

While there have been mayn who have weighed along with an increasing amount of ‘reasons’ as to why Samuel wants out, with Pro Football Talk even suggesting that Samuel simply wants to be closer to his native South Carolina, the reality remains that we can only take the word of the man himself at this point. Regarding just what that is, on one side the star receiver has been quiet on his intentions, however, on the other he has made two noteworthy moves within the last days. Firstly, he “liked” a tweet which state that he would look great in a Cowboys uniform - later removing his like - and then he also tweeted himself saying, “Reporters jobs is to make stories only people know the truth about situation is 49ers, [my agent Tory Dandy], and Deebo Samuel.” The tweet was later deleted.

What can the 49ers do to solve the Deebo Samuels situation?

Negotiating with someone who does not want to negotiate with you is always going to be difficult and that’s before considering the idea that one has to have clearly in mind what you’re going to offer the individual on the other side of the table, which it must be said the 49ers appear not to. Incidentally, a little more than a month ago Samuel was happy to inform San Francisco fans that he wouldn’t be going anywhere, however, that stance has clearly changed. That the 49ers don’t seem to have an alternative to using him in the way he has indicated he does not like, only makes matters worse. At this point, a trade is probably in the best interest of all involved, but if you’re a 49ers fan you’ve got to be hoping for a middle ground.