NFL defenses have had to get used to Deebo Samuel running through them. From the moment he entered the league, Samuel has demonstrated an unparalleled ability to barrel through, evade and bounce off defenders while serving as both a receiver and as a ball-carrier out of the backfield.
His unique skill set makes Samuel a fascinating player to watch, and the San Francisco 49ers star was one of five pass-catchers followed through the 2023 season for the Netflix series 'Receiver'.
The series also tracks Samuel's 49er teammate George Kittle through a campaign that saw the 49ers go within one play of winning Super Bowl.
It was Samuel who was the star in Week 3 of last season, a dominant 30-12 win over the New York Giants on Thursday Night Football, with his success in creating yards after the catch at will leaving his quarterback scratching his head.
A play in which Samuel broke through four Giants tacklers had Brock Purdy at a loss, leading him to hilariously quiz the 2021 first-team All-Pro as to the secret behind his defining trait.
Said Purdy on the sideline: "Seriously though, what goes through your mind? How'd you do that?
"Like this isn't even high school. These are grown men. Makes no sense."
"I don't like to get tackled" was Samuel's succinct response.
Samuel continues to do a remarkable job of avoiding tackles. He averaged 8.9 yards after catch per reception last season, the most of all qualifying pass-catchers, per NextGen Stats, outperforming his expected YAC per reception of 4.9 by a full four yards. On top of that, he led all receivers with 33 missed tackles forced after a reception, per Pro Football Focus.
Only two other wideouts (Noah Brown and Khalil Shakir) averaged even three YAC per reception over expectation. Put simply, Samuel is a receiver who doesn't have anyone close to being his equal with ball in hand in the open field. It has been that way for a long time and will likely remain the case in 2024.
Samuel may not be able to provide a detailed explantation as to why that is the case, but quarterback Purdy will be all too happy to continue to reap the benefits of the the diverse playmaker's ineffable calling card.
