Deebo Samuel responds to report that 49ers WR was out of shape

On Thursday, Tim Kawakami reported that the San Francisco 49ers believed their relationship with wide receiver Deebo Samuel was nearing its end—and that the team seemed content with parting ways.

Samuel requested a trade in January, and the 49ers granted him permission to seek one, making it appear that the team showed little internal concern about the impact of losing the versatile wideout.

After speaking with sources, Kawakami elaborated on the 49ers' perspective. Samuel is coming off one of his least productive seasons, recording just 806 scrimmage yards and four total touchdowns—the worst statistical output of his career outside of his injury-plagued 2020 campaign.

"He had a bad year," Kawakami said on his podcast. "He is not in shape. I said it on last week's podcast—20 pounds. I keep hearing it, 20 pounds overweight. And that led to a lot of his lack of explosion, in their belief, his lack of ability to get through tackles, [which has] kind of been who he is. That's why he's so valuable. It's not because he's outrunning people.

"And the sense that Deebo's, 'Okay, you don't think I'm that valuable? Let me get out of here.' I think that this has come to an end. This relationship, which was great for Kyle Shanahan and Deebo—I think they're still close—but I think had been bumpy."

Samuel responded to Kawakami's remarks on social media later that day, calling the insider's claims false. However, the receiver later deleted his post.

Samuel, 29, has surpassed 900 receiving yards in a season only once—during his breakout 2021 campaign. That year, the dynamic playmaker totaled 1,770 scrimmage yards, including 1,405 receiving yards, and 14 total touchdowns. Since then, he has struggled to approach those types of numbers.

The 49ers drafted Samuel in the second round out of South Carolina in 2019. He earned All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors in 2021. Now, after six seasons in Santa Clara, the receiver will likely be playing elsewhere in 2025.