Last month, San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle made some headlines when he mused that maybe ex-49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel could return to the Niners this offseason. He just admitted in an interview that he only said that because he was asked about Deebo a million times.
Kittle said the following during a recent podcast appearance:
"I was just trying to be interesting. I had no idea. I got asked about Deebo like 10 times during Super Bowl week and I think that was later in my interview and I was like, 'Oh yeah, we might just sign some old people back,' because I was tired of getting asked if we were going to sign Deebo Samuel or not. They don’t call me and ask."
It’s a funny and very honest point from Kittle who is always going to keep it real. He had to do so many interviews for Super Bowl week, and with Samuel set to be a free agent, it’s a very obvious and easy question to ask Kittle who was teammates with Deebo for years.
The fact Kittle admitted he was basically just saying it to preempt the question makes a ton of sense.
Still, it provided interesting fodder and entering the offseason it did not seem impossible the Niners could bring Samuel back into the fold at the right price.
He's coming off a decent season with the Washington Commanders, and while he is a far cry from the player he was with San Francisco back in 2021, he could still provide some depth and value.
But now, after the Niners signed Mike Evans and Christian Kirk, a reunion seems very unlikely. Maybe the 49ers will draft a receiver next month, but they are probably done adding free-agent wide receivers at least for the time being.
Evans gives the Niners an elite receiver atop the depth chart who could be an absolute menace in Kyle Shanahan’s offense. Kirk gives the offense a proven deep threat, which will keep opposing defenses honest next season.
It’s tough to see how Samuel fits into the picture especially when San Francisco also has young receivers like Jacob Cowing and Jordan Watkins on the depth chart.
Samuel seems like to end up with a team that has ties to the 49ers. Maybe Robert Saleh would want him as a veteran option for young Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward, or Mike McDaniel wants to take a chance and plug him into the Los Angeles Chargers offense. The Houston Texans are another team to keep an eye on, and a reunion with the Commanders cannot be ruled out. Imagine Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk reunited there.
Kittle is on podcasts all the time, so sometimes he is just going to say things to say them, which seems to be true of his Deebo prediction.