This NFL off-season has been filled with tremendous drama at the wide receiver position. Davante Adams, formerly of the Green Bay Packers, was reunited with his college quarterback in Las Vegas after a trade to the Raiders. There is growing speculation about A.J. Brown’s status with the Tennessee Titans, Tyreek Hill was traded to the Miami Dolphins, Allen Robinson signed with the Los Angeles Rams, Christian Kirk signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and the list goes on.
The latest news at the position comes via San Francisco, where the talented Deebo Samuel has asked the 49ers for a trade. Jeff Darlington of the NFL Network was first with the reporting, which was later confirmed by other reporters.
The reason? Apparently it has to do with his usage in San Francisco:
Money is not at the root of the issues for Deebo Samuel, otherwise that could be fixed with a big offer. But there are also issues with how he’s used. https://t.co/ZX7dKR2yik
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 20, 2022
Samuel might have a case. After all, a huge topic this off-season was how teams could find a similar player in the draft, an offensive weapon who could operate out of the backfield on first down, the slot on second down and perhaps along the boundary on third down. How teams could find that kind of player seemed a heavy topic of discussion at the Combine, and it was among the many questions asked of new Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel during his media session in Indianapolis.
According to charting data, Samuel saw 145 snaps out of the backfield last season. While some of his usage out of the backfield was in the passing game, or on runs to the edges, Kyle Shanahan did not shy away from using Samuel between the tackles.
As he did on this play against the Dallas Cowboys:
This might be what Samuel has in mind with his request.
After all, the idea of his versatility made him such a fun player to study and watch last season. But Samuel has more on his mind than those of us on the outside studying an offensive weapon. Living life in-between the tackles as an offensive weapon, even just a handful of times each week, is not the best way to extend his shelf life in the NFL.
And from his perspective, Samuel can create explosive plays when operating along the boundary, away from those bigger bodies in the middle of the field. Whether in the quick screen game, as he showed on this play against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship game:
Or in the downfield passing game. Take this snap against the Cincinnati Bengals:
In terms of studying Samuel last season, this was my favorite snap of his. Forget the times he was used in the running game to the edges, or between the tackles, or even in the quick-screen game. The subtle adjustment Samuel makes before the catch, stepping towards Jimmy Garoppolo — and around the nearest defensive threat — set him up for both the reception and the yardage after the catch.
This play also speaks to another part of his usage, which is his willingness to operate over the middle of the field. This play is one of San Francisco’s core passing concepts, with a post route from an inside receiver and Samuel on the slot. The receiver makes these plays look routine, all while showing absolutely no fear working over the middle.
With what he can do on the outside, both in the screen game and downfield, Samuel has a case that putting more on his plate — particularly out of the backfield and between the tackles — might do more harm than good for him in the long-term.
And with what he can offer on the outside, odds are another NFL team will agree.