49ers must resist nostalgia-trip temptation with Deebo Samuel

Someone once said (I think) that "nostalgia's a hell of a drug," and you can understand why. In today's landscape, there's arguably never been a bigger market for the pull of the past. Films get remade, or get prequels, TV shows get reboots, and everyone mostly has a good time. It can be comforting to return to the familiar, and in some rare cases, that second act can be a fitting coda to a memorable first run.

The one place that doesn't work, however, is professional football.

Off the top of my head, I'm struggling to think of any reunion tours that have worked out in the NFL. It's actually easier to think of some disastrous ones, like Darrelle Revis returning to the New York Jets, or Randy Moss with the Minnesota Vikings. It's early morning, so perhaps there are some examples of this working out, but none jump out at me.

That's one of many reasons the San Francisco 49ers must deny themselves the temptation to reunite with wide receiver Deebo Samuel. Whatever Richard Sherman might think.

Listen, I genuinely don't think there was a bigger Deebo fan than me in his first run with San Francisco. Had I been writing for Niner Noise back then, you'd have had me banging the drum for him to be named MVP in that ridiculous 2021 season, one of my favourites the 49ers had under head coach Kyle Shanahan.

Samuel epitomised the things I love about football, and and its best, the Niners: explosive after-the-catch running, no-nonsense run blocking, and an ability to run with the ball like a demolition ball.

So you'd think I'd want him back, no?

No. That was five years ago. And while it was a wonderful time, no one would be served by the 49ers taking a backward step. Frankly, ever since Samuel got his big payday in 2022, he hasn't been the same player. That isn't me suggesting he took the money and cashed it (I don't think that's who he is), but simply that his all-action style wore him and his body down over time.

You only have to look at his final seasons with San Francisco -- in particular an execrable 2024 where everything seemed to go wrong -- to know why his time's up. He's no longer explosive, he can't play as physically, and his hands and speed burst also seem to often desert him.

Samuel still makes some plays by sheer force of will, but he doesn't move the needle any more. That would be particularly true for the current 49ers wide receiver room, which contains Mike Evans and Christian Kirk following their recent signings. Any addition of Samuel would merely clog the pipeline for Ricky Pearsall, Jordan Watkins, and Jacob Cowing, as well as potentially precluding any further draft additions.

It's a retrograde step, and it's unlikely to have the impact on the field it'd need to in order to be worthwhile either. It's not 12 months since Samuel was vowing revenge on the Niners, and to show the league what he was all about with the Washington Commanders. And yet, one pedestrian season later, he finds himself back on the market.

Samuel started the 2025 season quite well, but never topped 100 yards in a game, and significantly declined in the latter half of the season, recording no touchdowns in his last six games. That led to a 72-catch, 727-yard season with five receiving touchdowns. Not awful, not bottom of the barrel, but not needle-moving either. He didn't even start in five of Washington's games.

Was some of this down to the lack of quarterback Jayden Daniels' prowess? Undoubtedly, but for context, Pearsall played the vast majority of his season with a backup quarterback and logged 528 yards on only 36 catches over only nine games. While you can doubt his health, Pearsall's production was on track to surpass Samuel, and then some. The former also has the potential to get better, whereas Samuel appears to be a player on the decline.

Samuel was a force-nine gale of a player, a real hard-hitting hurricane. In these latter years of his career, though, he more represents a gentle breeze cutting across Golden Gate Park on a summer's day.

I don't want to see his second tenure in San Francisco. Let's just keep the memories and big plays of his first run. The 49ers offense is aging enough; it's time to move forward.

It gives me no pleasure at all to say it, but the 49ers must say "no" to Deebo.