John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Videos are auto-populated by an affiliate. This site has no control over the videos that appear above.
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."
Related News
The Jacksonville Jaguars were reportedly interested in trading for star wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. However, the San Francisco 49ers' asking price of the No. 17 overall pick plus a player was seemingly too high for the team.
Now, it appears another AFC team might be trying to pry Aiyuk away from the West Coast. Andrew Fillipponi of Pittsburgh-area radio station 93.7 The Fan reports that the Steelers are looking to work out a deal with the 49ers for the receiver.
"Sources: The Steelers have looked into 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk," Fillipponi wrote on social media. "He's entering the last year of his contract. Steelers would have to execute a sign and trade. But they've shown
This morning, Andrew Fillipponi of Pittsburgh-area radio station 93.7 The Fan reported that the Steelers have "shown interest" in trading for San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
Hours later, Aiyuk shared the following on social media, leading some to believe that the receiver might be open to joining the East Coast team.
@CoachTomlin they saying we twins. What you think ? 👀— BA (@THE2ERA)
Brandon Aiyuk appears open to the possibility of playing elsewhere in 2024. If the San Francisco 49ers can't negotiate a favorable long-term deal with their star receiver, he knows someone else will.
However, the 49ers primarily aim to retain Aiyuk for the long haul. The team exercised the fifth-year option on his contract but seeks to secure an extension before he retakes the field. General manager John Lynch recently praised Aiyuk, calling him one of his "favorite guys around the building."
"He's a competitor. He's a warrior," Lynch added. "He plays with such physicality, also with grace, in the way some of the positions his body can get into. And then he's got a flair
Brandon Aiyuk couldn't have chosen a better time to have a career year.
In his fourth season in the league, the San Francisco 49ers standout wide receiver set career highs in receiving yards (1,342), yards per reception (17.9), yards per target (12.8) and catch percentage (71.4%). What might be most impressive is that Aiyuk's receiving yard total was good for seventh in the NFL despite him being 36th in targets (105) and 31st in catches (75).
But even with a breakout season in his rear view mirror, the question remains: Do John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan feel as if Aiyuk is worth a massive contract extension?
On the surface you'd think the answer to that question would be yes, but the truth is things aren't always that simple when you're dealing with a