After failing to reach the playoffs in 2024 thanks to a 6-11 record, San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch has a lot on his offseason agenda. The biggest item on the itinerary is addressing Brock Purdy’s contract situation with the former Pro Bowl quarterback entering the final year of his rookie deal.
Yet, other issues are at the forefront, such as finding a way to carve out more cap space, which brings us to Deebo Samuel and his $15.8 million cap hit. Like Purdy, Samuel is entering the final year of his contract. However, there’s been reports that the 49ers may end up trading the former All-Pro receiver instead.
Teams uninterested in San Francisco 49ers’ Deebo Samuels trade cost
While he hasn’t played in 16 games in a single season since his lone 1,000-yard season as a receiver in 2021, Deebo Samuel remains a threat to score each time he touches the ball. Yet, he’s coming off a season where he averaged the fewest yards per game in his NFL career, at 44.7 YPG. That amounted to 670 yards and three touchdowns over 15 games while being surpassed by Brandon Aiyuk as the No. 1 target in San Francisco’s passing offense.
Is a secondary target really worth nearly $20 million for one season? Maybe not to a cap-strapped 49ers team, but what about their competitors around the league?
Recently, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini and former NFL QB Chase Daniel discussed Samuel’s trade market and how teams aren’t exactly presenting offers that are too good to refuse.
“Look they’re going to try to trade him. But I don’t know. I don’t see teams pounding on the door for Deebo right now.”
Dianna Russini on Deebo Samuel’s trade market
Meanwhile, Daniel chose to focus on the impact that a Samuel trade could have on Brock Purdy. From Daniel’s perspective, he believes trading Samuel gives Purdy much more leverage, which could lead to the QB’s preference to play out the final year of his contract, effectively setting up a much larger payday in the long run.
“If I’m Brock Purdy and I even get a whiff of you trying to trade my No. 1 receiver, I am not signing with you. I am going to pull the leverage card, and I’m going to play out another deal.”
Chase Daniel on Samuel’s trade talks impacting Brock Purdy
It’s hard to envision Purdy pulling the type of power play Daniel speaks of, especially considering the 49ers still have Aiyuk, George Kittle and 2024 first-round pick Ricky Pearsall ready to go. Yet, perhaps Mr. Irrelevant is willing to be more patient before getting the massive payday young quarterbacks often receive after playing at such a high level for several seasons.
