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There were several instances of social media disputes over the weekend regarding 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel’s intention to leave the team. Some of the claims have yet to be verified, including an alleged text message exchange with Seahawks’ Jamal Adams, who, if the back-and-forth is legitimate, signs all his text messages “#prez.”
A video circulating shows the inside of a crowded nightclub. A large sign carried through the club declares: “Deebo remains #49ers.” The camera then pans to Samuel, who smiles and slides his fingers under his chin to send a clear message that he disagrees with the message on the sign.
Where it goes from here, it’s amazing it’s come this far. While we still don’t know the exact reasoning behind Samuel’s trade request, the fact that it has come to this counts as a team failure in some ways. If the only reason isn’t that he doesn’t want to be in San Francisco, there’s something the 49ers could have said or done to prevent the relationship from unraveling to this point. And even if it’s as simple as Deebo doesn’t want to live and work in California and no more, his decision to disclose his desire for a trade suggests there’s a level of animosity that exists between an NFL team and such an important player should not pass.
It’s still unknown what, if anything, the 49ers are doing to defuse the situation. It is unknown if they will trade him. The fact that several other recipients have gotten what they wanted in recent years (starting with Stefon Diggs, who tweeted out of Minnesota, and continuing with recent trades from Devante Adams and Tyreek Hill) creates a natural expectation that other players get when they want, when they want it.
That is the question that needs to be answered. Will the 49ers take an old-school play-for-us-or-play-for-noone approach to Samuel, or will they honor his request? Some sort of clarity is bound to come this week.