Deebo Samuel has not been the same player for the San Francisco 49ers this year. At this point, this has become common knowledge not just to Niners fans but around the NFL.
Through 13 starts, Samuel has a disappointing 569 yards and two total touchdowns on the year. He's largely avoided injuries, so that's not an excuse for his performance. In last Thursday's game against the Los Angeles Rams, Samuel dropped a pass after having the audacity to complain about not getting enough touches (though that tweet has since been deleted).
It's been a down year for the once All-Pro wide receiver, and Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice didn't hold back when criticizing the six-year pro.
Rice let Samuel have it during an appearance on 95.7 The Game's "The Morning Roast".
"That ball that dropped, after you complain about not getting that many touches, you cannot drop the football," Rice said. "Because everybody is going to get down on you and they're going to come after you. I never said anything about not getting touches or anything like that. I just worked, man. I just kept working, and if you show it during practice, they're going to make the call during the actual football game where you're going to have opportunities, where you can make catches, get into a rhythm and be productive."
Jerry Rice holds nothing back in critiquing Deebo Samuel's obvious downfall in 2024
Rice is 100-percent right.
It'd be one thing if Samuel was playing how 49ers fans were accustomed to him playing and he wasn't getting the ball, but he's been bad. Then for him to whine about not being targeted more and have an absolutely brutal drop during a must-win game, is inexcusable.
Good for Rice for calling Samuel out.
This has been an overall disappointing year for the Niners after the team took the eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs to overtime just 10 months ago. Samuel's not the only reason San Francisco has taken a massive step back in 2024, but he's certainly part of it.
He missed two games in 2023 and had 1,117 scrimmage yards and 12 total touchdowns, a far cry from what he's done this year.
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Samuel is under contract for one more year, but it wouldn't be surprising if the Niners opted to trade him during the offseason. Head coach Kyle Shanahan has proven that he's not a fan of drama, and Samuel has provided plenty of drama during his time with San Francisco.
While this season is a wash, the Niners can try to look ahead to 2025 and who's to say if Deebo will still be on the team then?
We'll have to see what craziness the offseason brings to San Francisco.