Could the Patriots pull off a blockbuster trade for Deebo Samuel?
On “The Greg Hill Show” Thursday, ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio outlined how the Patriots could acquire the dynamic and disgruntled wideout from the 49ers: trade the No. 21 overall pick. It’s a scenario that Florio says isn’t as crazy as it may sound.
“I’d give up the 21st overall pick in a heartbeat to get Deebo Samuel,” he said. “These are just lottery tickets. We don’t know when you scratch them off what they’re going to be. You know what you’re getting in Deebo Samuel, and he’s got the kind of versatility that I think Bill Belichick craves. He’s hard-nosed, he loves football, he plays hard. I think he checks every box that Bill Belichick would want him to check.”
Samuel enjoyed a breakout season in 2021, catching 77 passes for 1,405 yards and rushing 59 times for 365 yards. Earlier this month, it was reported Samuel wants out of San Francisco, but his reasons are unclear. He dismissed the rumors Wednesday, chastising others for guessing about his status.
As of now, it doesn’t appear as if there’s much movement on Samuel. But that could all change once the NFL Draft starts Thursday. The 49ers might purposefully be keeping their dealings quiet, which could indicate the Patriots are involved.
“Who’s the ideal trade partner to make that happen? If you want to work out a secret deal that no one will talk about, Bill Belichick is the ideal partner for that to happen,” Florio said.
Landing Samuel would be quite the coup for Belichick, who may just be laying in the weeds. Remember: nobody saw the Jimmy Garoppolo trade coming. We could have a repeat here.