How badly does Deebo Samuel want out of San Francisco?
Apparently, a nice, new contract would not make him change his mind.
The wideout has made clear he wants to be traded, although the specific reasons for the request have been disputed and aren’t entirely clear. For many players, a trade demand is the product of contract talks that have fallen through, however the 49ers appear plenty amenable to giving him a lucrative, long-term deal.
It raised eyebrows, though, when an Instagram Live video from Samuel’s stepmom appeared to leak a conversation of the wideout saying he didn’t have a contract offer from the 49ers. That happened after 95.7 The Game's Damon Bruce reported just that, that the Niners hadn't made an offer.
Responding to that video Friday on the “Pat McAfee Show,” NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport explained why Samuel didn’t get an offer from the 49ers.
“I would say that it’s correct that Deebo Samuel has not received an offer from the 49ers," Rapoport said. "From my understanding, he basically told them I want to be traded, don’t make an offer. When people say it’s probably about the money, I don’t think this is. Now, if he had an offer of $25 million a year, might it have made it more difficult to have started this whole thing? Yeah, I think had the 49ers made an offer initially, he’d have a lot more to think about, but they didn’t. So, he does not have an offer, he told them don’t make an offer, I want to be traded. …
“It didn’t seem like there was any animosity (in the leaked video), like why didn’t they make an offer. I think Deebo is fine with it, because he wants to be traded.”
The reality is that Samuel is such a valuable player that it’s not 49ers or bust in terms of getting a big payday. He can get traded somewhere else – or, in his worst case scenario, test the market next offseason as a free agent – and get a huge deal.
Of course, the final dollar amount might be determined by how he’s being used and the amount of carries he’s getting as a rusher, which was reported to be partly the cause of Samuel’s rift with the organization.
For now, the 49ers seem insistent on keeping Samuel. But since he could become a free agent next offseason, they either have to move him or let him walk for nothing next year.
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