Wide receiver Deebo Samuel is a former teammate of Javon Kinlaw, the San Francisco 49ers' first of two first-round draft picks. The two played together at South Carolina and had spoken to each other leading to the draft. In fact, Samuel had a feeling they were going to be reunited with the 49ers.
"Deebo called me the other day and told me I was coming to San Francisco, and I just texted Deebo," Kinlaw told reporters shortly after being drafted while adding that he and Samuel have a good relationship.
Samuel spoke with reporters via a conference call on Wednesday and discussed his former college teammate turned pro teammate.
"I've been with Javon since he got there," Samuel said. "He's a very humble, hard-working guy. Really not a problem-type of guy. He's just very chill when it comes to off-the-field. He wants to do the best he can when he's on the field, and really, you can look at him and see he's just a dog out there."
Samuel was also asked about the two rookie wide receivers, first-round pick Brandon Aiyuk and seventh-round pick Jauan Jennings. He has already reached out to Aiyuk to offer up some advice.
"Aiyuk got a little finesse to his game, which I like," Samuel said. "I mean, we're kind of similar in a lot of ways. I just like that it will give defenses some problems, [with] say the jet-sweep motions or whatever it is. So used to me going into motion, and then seeing a different guy. I think it will give defenses things to think about."
Samuel shared that he asked assistant coach Wes Welker for Aiyuk's phone number after the draft, and reached out to the rookie receiver.
"I knew how hard it is to be as good as you want to be in this offense without thinking," Samuel said. "So I gave him a call, and I was just like, 'Hey, man, I just want you to know it's going to take time.'"
Samuel knows that Aiyuk is far more limited than he was during his rookie offseason last year. Due to continued concerns surrounding the coronavirus pandemic, Aiyuk can't meet face-to-face with his coaches yet and is limited to Zoom conference calls as his only means of communication with the 49ers.
"I was just like, 'Hey, man, you just need to lock in, pay attention. I know it's hard, but if you need anything, feel free to call any one of (the receivers) like me, [Kendrick Bourne], or even Wes,'" Samuel added.
Samuel also spoke with Jennings and told the rookie receiver that he has big shoes to fill.
"I kind of know Jauan Jennings' game pretty close because I played against him when I was in college," Samuel said. "You can tell he's a very physical guy, loves to get after it, don't care about getting dirty or whatnot."
