Deebo Samuel's future with the San Francisco 49ers could be up in the air this offseason as the team will likely explore trade options for the receiver, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on Sunday.
There was a possibility of Samuel being traded last offseason while receiver Brandon Aiyuk's future with the franchise appeared cloudy. Aiyuk ended up signing a four-year extension with the 49ers, while Samuel's contract was restructured to free up cap space.
Samuel spoke out about his frustration with his role in the 49ers' offense during the 2024 season. He totaled just 670 receiving yards and three touchdowns this season, which was a substantial drop from last season. His stats included career lows of 51 catches and 81 targets (not including 2020 when he missed nine games due to injuries).
But, even after a tumultuous 2024 season, 49ers general manager John Lynch sounded like he planned on keeping Samuel on the roster in January when discussing the receiver.
"We're not in the business of letting good players out of here," Lynch said.
If the 49ers keep Samuel, he is due $17.55 million in 2025, which is the final year of his three-year, $71.55 million contract extension he signed in July 2022. Otherwise, San Francisco would need to be cognizant of when to cut him. If the 49ers cut Samuel before June 1, they would face $31 million in dead money and lose about $15.2 million in cap space for the 2025 season [per Spotrac]. But if they cut Samuel after June 1, the 49ers would spread the dead money over two years and save about $5.2 million toward the '25 cap.
We'll see what happens this offseason, but Samuel is a name to keep an eye out for.
More of the Latest Around the NFL
This article was originally published on www.si.com as 49ers Likely to Explore Trade Options for Deebo Samuel This Offseason.
