Deebo Samuel might be playing his way out of 49ers' long-term plans

Deebo Samuel has been great for the 49ers in his career, but his decline could mean it is time for the Niners to move on.

The San Francisco 49ers are having a rotten season. Sitting at 5-6 and likely to miss the playoffs, there is plenty of blame to go around.

One player who is catching a lot of flak is wide receiver Deebo Samuel whose struggles bring his future on the team into question.

Samuel has had some rough games as of late, hauling in only a few receptions for not very much yardage over the last two San Francisco losses. He only has 43 yards over the last two games, which is just not what one would expect from a star receiver like him.

Of course, part of this may be due to quarterback Brock Purdy being injured and unable to play in Week 12 against the Green Bay Packers with quarterback Brandon Allen filling in. Yet, there is still a sense that Deebo should be doing more. He certainly deserves at least a little blame for Allen's interception, which went right through Deebo's hands into the hands of a Packers defender.

Legendary ex-49er Brent Jones did not mince words when discussing Deebo's lackluster last few games. And the thought of the Round 2 draft pick out of South Carolina being a potential 2025 cap casualty has emerged, too.

A narrative is also emerging that Samuel does not have the same speed and burst that he once did. We have grown accustomed to the multi-use weapon blowing defenders away with the ball in his hands in his career. Fans have grown accustomed to plays like last year's 46-yard touchdown against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Whether that assessment is unfair or not, it seems clear that Samuel is not as much of a threat running the ball as he has been in the past. He only has 79 rushing yards on 27 carries this year.

That is a far cry from the 225 yards on 37 carries he had last season.

There is no easy explanation for this decline. He is 28 years old now, so perhaps it is only natural that he may not have the same burst as he did as a younger player. Samuel has missed games due to injury this year, so it is very possible he is having to play through ailments and is not as effective.

No matter what, the Niners have have to assess whether Deebo is the same weapon he used to be in the offense. Perhaps the Niners will have to make the difficult decision to move on from Samuel the same way the Golden State Warriors moved on from fan-favorite Klay Thompson. Thus far, Golden State has seen improvement over last year, so perhaps San Francisco needs a similar reset on offense.

Samuel has been a great player for the 49ers for a long time, but his struggles may force general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan to make a tough decision regarding one of the team's most popular players.