Will the Indianapolis Colts possibly explore a trade with the San Francisco 49ers for versatile receiver Deebo Samuel?
In 2022, professional athletes express their displeasure with their team passively through social media. Whether it is a cryptic tweet or removing all team-affiliated pictures from Instagram, players know how to get everyone’s attention.
This was the case earlier in the offseason with Arizona Cardinals quarterback, Kyler Murray. Arizona and Murray figured things out and the Cardinals’ pictures returned to his Instagram.
However, there now seems to be another disgruntled star in the NFC West. San Francisco 49ers do-it-all star, Deebo Samuel, recently removed all San Francisco pictures from his Instagram and unfollowed the team.
Deebo Samuel has removed his #49ers profile picture, unfollowed the team, and has deleted over 80 posts (was at 248, now at 164) from his Instagram account.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) April 7, 2022
Deebo is entering the final year of his rookie contract.
Could mean something. Could be trolling. But it happened. pic.twitter.com/0KXDbBw3dU
What could be the reasoning? Samuel is entering the final season of his rookie contract. With the receiver market booming around the league, and Samuel’s proven importance to the 49ers, he’s probably ready to get an extension representative of his worth.
What is his worth in this new market? It’s hard to say exactly because there aren’t many players like Samuel in the NFL. San Francisco lines him up in the backfield and at receiver and uses him like the kid on a Pop Warner team that is just better than everyone else.
According to Spotrac, Deebo’s market valuation is a four-year contract worth $90 million. Will Samuel want more than that? Is that something the 49ers are willing to pay? What happens if they aren’t?
If the 49ers aren’t willing to meet Samuel’s demands, they will probably trade him with one season left to guarantee they get something instead of letting him walk in free agency next year.
As bizarre as that sounds, this is an offseason that has already seen Amari Cooper, Davante Adams, and Tyreek Hill traded. The Indianapolis Colts didn’t get involved in any of those trades but will they explore one for Samuel?
From NFL Now: #49ers star Deebo Samuel removed all images of the team from his social media, which obviously means... we shall see. pic.twitter.com/sBmMxmsygQ
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 8, 2022
Should Colts trade for Deebo Samuel?
Could Indianapolis use a player like Samuel? Of course. Last season, Samuel caught 77 passes for 1,405 yards and six touchdowns. He also added 365 yards on the ground and an additional eight touchdowns.
Samuel could greatly improve the receiving unit while also making the Colts’ run game even more dangerous. Looking into a backfield with Jonathan Taylor and Samuel would be terrifying for defenses.
But is this something the Colts would do? Probably not. Indianapolis would have to move a lot just to acquire Samuel then Indy would have to give him an extension that makes him one of the highest-paid players in the league.
As great as that would be, it just doesn’t seem like something the Colts will be doing. So although Deebo Samuel being traded may be a possibility, Indy shouldn’t get its hopes up that he will land in the city.
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