Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports
49ers 2019 NFL Draft: What Round 2 pick Deebo Samuel brings to offense
Videos are auto-populated by an affiliate. This site has no control over the videos that appear above.
The San Francisco 49ers just selected South Carolina wide receiver
Deebo Samuel with the No. 36 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.
A day after grabbing Ohio State EDGE
Nick Bosa with the second pick, head coach Kyle Shanahan got some much-needed offensive reinforcements, bolstering a wide receiver corps that lacked a single 500-yard wideout in 2018. And with the Niners having already parted ways with veteran wide receiver Pierre Garçon during the offseason, grabbing another physical player makes a lot of sense.
There's an argument San Francisco could have been better off with either Ole Miss' D.K. Metcalf or his college teammate, A.J. Brown. Yet the Niners apparently had little interest in the former. And while they met with both Brown and Samuel in the days leading up to the draft, the latter seemed to earn Shanahan's favor just a bit more.
Physicality should be one of the things 49ers fans see from Samuel on the field. While he's only 5-foot-11 and 214 pounds, he's perfectly capable going up against press coverage at the line of scrimmage, using his strength to simply overpower average-sized defensive backs.
But that's not what likely drew Shanahan to Samuel.
One of the biggest traits the head coach looks for in his wideouts is separation abilities and footwork. Samuel benefited from working under Shanahan's South squad at the 2019 Senior Bowl, where the Gamecock showcased some excellent footwork in red-zone drills.
If you haven't seen them, just watch
this below:
While the lack of height is a bit of a concern, the fact Samuel is more than adept at creating his own space in confined areas should help make up for it. And it certainly influenced Shanahan's decision making, too.
Samuel does have some injury history, though, and a collegiate hamstring injury might be something to watch over his first few years at the NFL level. It will be interesting to see how he handles some of those bigger boundary cornerbacks within the pro ranks as well.
Still, San Francisco just upgraded its receiving corps to a large degree, especially considering the lack of production seen here last season.
The 49ers have one more pick, currently -- No. 67 overall -- on day two of the 2019 NFL Draft.
-
Written by:
Peter Panacy has been writing about the 49ers since 2011 for outlets like Bleacher Report, Niner Noise, 49ers Webzone, and is occasionally heard as a guest on San Francisco's 95.7 FM The Game and the Niners' flagship station, KNBR 680. Feel free to follow him, or direct any inquiries to his Twitter account.
The opinions within this article are those of the writer and, while just as important, are not necessarily those of the site as a whole.
-
Mike
Passing on Brown and OBJ leaves me very skeptical regarding the potential of any college WR given the glaring problems at WR, TD scoring and RZ scoring. Everybody jumps on the hype train come draft time and then many of these players (particularly WRs) come crashing back down to earth when the speed of the NFL/DBs end up being faster than they are. Crabtree comes to mind...painfully.
Apr 27, 2019 at 6:07 PM
More San Francisco 49ers News
Deebo Samuel to miss another practice ahead of 49ers vs. Cardinals
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel continues to miss practices. He didn't participate in Monday's bonus session, and head coach Kyle Shanahan revealed that the offense's do-everything player won't participate in Wednesday's practice.
The coach informed reporters that Samuel is working through rib and knee injuries. Following last Thursday night's game against the New York Giants, the 49ers feared Samuel may have sustained a serious rib injury. However, further examination revealed no break, and the receiver was just sore in the days after the game.
The knee injury is a new update.
"It was something we really didn't know until the next day, later in that day, just him being sore and stuff," Shanahan said of the knee injury. "He didn't
49ers vs. Cardinals Injury Report: Deebo Samuel doesn't practice; Brandon Aiyuk limited
The San Francisco 49ers are preparing for their Week 4 contest against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk felt good enough to practice on Monday despite missing the 49ers' Week 3 game against the New York Giants due to a shoulder injury.
Aiyuk was limited during Wednesday's practice.
Wide receiver Deebo Samuel is dealing with rib and knee injuries and did not practice on Monday. Neither did wide receiver Jauan Jennings, cornerback Ambry Thomas, or linebackers Dre Greenlaw and Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles.
Samuel, Greenlaw, and Jennings remained out on Wednesday. Thomas and
49ers' Deebo Samuel noticeably absent at start of Thursday practice
Wide receiver Deebo Samuel continues to work through rib and knee injuries sustained during the San Francisco 49ers' Week 3 win over the New York Giants last week. Samuel left the field after Thursday's walk-through and headed to the weight room as his teammates prepared for practice.
#49ers practice update:Deebo Samuel coming off field after walk through session, goes into weight room as team stretches for formal practice. No visible issue with his
49ers vs. Cardinals Injury Report: Deebo Samuel misses another practice; Dre Greenlaw returns
The San Francisco 49ers are preparing for their Week 4 contest against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
Deebo Samuel continues to rack up the absences. For the third time this week, the wide receiver missed practice. He did not participate in Monday's bonus practice or Wednesday's session. Samuel was on the field for the team's walk-through on Thursday but left for the weight room once his teammates started stretching in preparation for practice.
Linebacker Dre Greenlaw returned to practice for the first time this week after missing time due to an ankle injury. Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (shoulder) shed his blue no-contact jersey, a sign that he could be nearing a return after being among the 49ers' inactives last
