San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch has built a team that has now made the NFC Championship Game twice in the last three years. On Thursday, he made a big declaration regarding one of the key players on those two teams: Deebo Samuel.
During a recent event, Lynch said that he’d be “a fool” to trade Samuel and doesn’t intend to. He made it clear that he expects Samuel to be a 49ers player this coming season.
“We haven’t traded him, and I’d be a fool to trade him. So yes, Deebo will be part of the 49ers this season,” Lynch said.
But the NFL world doesn’t seem to share Lynch’s confidence. While some analysts believe Samuel will stay solely due to the 49ers’ contract leverage, others think that he’s either delusional or dragging his feet:
Deebo Samuel proved to be one of the best offensive weapons in the NFL last year. He earned Pro Bowl and First-Team All-Pro honors as a receiver, but was a dynamic threat as a running back as well.
Samuel led the NFL in yards per reception and finished the season with over 1,700 yards from scrimmage and 14 rushing & receiving touchdowns.
But Samuel began to grumble about his contract situation after the season – especially amid a ton of big contracts going to top (and mid-tier) wide receivers.
John Lynch can boast about Deebo Samuel being on the team all he wants. But sooner or later he has to give Samuel a long-term contract.
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