San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel faced criticism after losing his composure on the sideline when kicker Jake Moody missed his third field goal attempt during Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Frustrated, Samuel approached Moody to voice his displeasure, prompting long snapper Taybor Pepper to intervene to defend the kicker.
A brief shoving match ensued between Samuel and Pepper. The incident was caught on camera and quickly became a focal point in post-game discussions.
Deebo Samuel grabbed the neck of long snapper Taybor Pepper and swiped at kicker Jake Moody after a third missed field goal pic.twitter.com/wFIK3p38DR
— Ollie Connolly (@OllieConnolly) November 10, 2024
"Normally, I don't even get like that, but just frustrated in the heat of battle," Samuel explained to reporters after the game. "You know, really close game, and I kind of got out of character a little bit. But I'll talk to Moody, and we'll get past it."
FS1 analyst Emmanuel Acho strongly criticized Samuel's actions, expressing his disapproval during a segment on The Facility.
"I don't know if I've ever had a bigger issue with something that's occurred intra-football team than the issue I have with Deebo punching his teammate," Acho said on Monday morning. "If you don't defend your teammates, who will, right, Deebo? At the end of the day, the long snapper should be protecting his kicker from the opponent. The long snapper shouldn't be protecting his kicker from his teammate."
Some fans have defended Samuel, pointing to their own frustrations with Moody's performance before his game-winning field goal that sealed the 49ers' 23-20 victory. They argue that Samuel was simply holding Moody accountable.
Acho disagreed, saying, "That's not what accountability looks like." He added that the right approach is to uplift a struggling teammate, not to confront him on the sideline. Acho also pointed out that Samuel isn't immune to mistakes.
"Deebo, I done seen you drop some catches," Acho continued. "Deebo, you All-Pro, and Deebo, you've had lesser moments in bigger stages, and we don't call you out for that. Super Bowl, 11 targets, three catches, 33 yards. Jauan Jennings had to save the day versus Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions because you was hurt. So you know what it's like to be injured."
Sunday was Moody's first game back after suffering a high-ankle sprain in Week 5. While Acho acknowledged that Moody's mistakes were unacceptable, he argued that Samuel's actions were far worse.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan downplayed the altercation, attributing it to flaring tempers and noting that any tension would be resolved swiftly.
"We'll fix it," Shanahan said. "If it hasn't been fixed already, we'll fix it on the plane, and we'll go back to loving each other tomorrow."
