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The rift between the 49ers and wide receiver Deebo Samuel seems to be closing. Samuel attended mandatory minicamp after requesting a trade, and made an Instagram post recently that indicated he’s at least open to playing for San Francisco this year. If Samuel is in the team’s long-term plans though, they need to get working on a contract extension that gets Samuel on the field for all of training camp.
Getting Samuel on the field is less about the receiver and more about his rapport with first-time starting quarterback Trey Lance. Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice said something to Matt Maiocco on an episode of the 49ers Talk podcast that stuck out about Lance and his receivers.
“It didn’t take me long to really adapt to him and just know exactly what he was thinking and when he was going to release the football,” Rice said after catching some passes from Lance.
Last season there weren’t a ton of opportunities for Lance and Samuel to work together – although Samuel did catch three touchdowns from the rookie QB during his 10 quarters of work as the full-time QB.
If Samuel winds up holding out in camp it’s just more missed opportunities for the two to build that chemistry Rice alluded to. Samuel is the team’s No. 1 receiver and arguably their best offensive playmaker. He has to be involved for the 49ers’ offense to reach its ceiling.
It wouldn’t be a disaster if there’s a day or two where Samuel is absent, but San Francisco can’t afford a prolonged holdout that disrupts Lance and Samuel’s ability to build a rapport. Once the season starts those practice reps become limited and making up for any lost offseason time is difficult.
Perhaps Samuel doesn’t plan on holding out. Maybe he’s content playing out his rookie deal and hitting free agency next offseason. If he does decide to skip some late July practices though, it could become a longer-term issue as he and Lance try to get on the same page.