Deebo Samuel made Los Angeles Rams defenders look silly on Monday night at Levi's Stadium. That includes three-time first-team All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey, who got embarrassed while trying to bring down the elusive wide receiver during his 57-yard touchdown catch.
Rams cornerback Derion Kendrick tried to make a play on the ball. By the time he turned around to realize what had happened, Samuel was off to the races. Defensive back Taylor Rapp tried to make a play on Samuel but was easily avoided.
Deebo just ran by the entire defense! @19problemz
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— NFL (@NFL) October 4, 2022
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The play brought back memories for one NFL legend.
"First of all, the defensive back (Kendrick), he took a very bad angle because he tried to undercut that pass," Jerry Rice said Tuesday morning on 95.7 The Game's The Morning Roast. "For Deebo to make that catch the way he did, then to have the vision to take it to the end zone, it brought back a lot of memories because I'm saying to myself he made some cuts that reminded me of someone else back in the day.
"To have that vision, and really get into pay dirt where you drop six on them, I think it was a fantastic play. But it had a lot to do with his vision on the football field and his teammates helping him to get to the end zone."
.@JerryRice approves 👏
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Samuel frustrated Rams defenders the entire game. He finished with six receptions for 115 yards and a touchdown in the 49ers' 24-9 victory over their division rival. Much to Rice's delight, Samuel, often used as a running back, had just two carries in the game.
"I'm not a big fan of him being back in that backfield because it's almost like the second he's back in the backfield, the opponent knows that Deebo is going to get the ball," Rice shared. "So it's going to be up to Kyle Shanahan to be a little bit more creative, maybe spread him out just a little bit more. Brandon Aiyuk, he made some plays, and they've got some weapons. They've got some guys that can make some plays."
Rice would like the 49ers to change one thing on offense. He wants to see head coach Kyle Shanahan draw up more plays that attack the outside edges of the football field.
"But another key factor too, guys, we've got to start throwing the ball on the outside," Rice said, "because defensive coordinators, they're going to figure that out because you know there's a lot of bubble screens, a lot of throws over the middle, but we really didn't attack the outside.
"And I wanted them to really just throw the ball deep, spread it out a little bit. Throw it deep just to let the opponent know that they could throw it deep to make it a threat. If you don't do that, then the opponent is going to squeeze down on everything."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Rice below.