News & Info/Headlines

The San Francisco 49ers and wide receiver Deebo Samuel have agreed to a three-year contract extension worth up to $73.5 million ($58.1 million guaranteed), multiple outlets reported Sunday.

Samuel had initially emerged as the next domino to fall in an offseason of massive wide receiver upheaval after it was reported he wanted out of the Bay Area due in part to his overtaxed role in the 49ers' offense, but tension between the sides thawed throughout the offseason.

During the NFL draft, the Niners received some offers on Samuel but never got anything close to what it would have taken to move on from him. In the weeks that follows, Samuel slowly came back into the fold, attending the team's mandatory, full-squad minicamp in June. Samuel then reported on time for the start of this year's training camp.

As ESPN.com's Nick Waggoner noted, Samuel and head coach Kyle Shanahan talked through the plan for him as camp opened on July 26, agreeing that Samuel would do conditioning work on the side as the Niners and his representatives continued hammering out a deal. At that time, Niners general manager John Lynch was more optimistic than ever that the sides would strike a deal.

And here we are.

In signing Samuel, the 49ers retained their most productive offensive player. In 2021, Samuel, 26, coined the term "wide back" because of his ability to play receiver and running back. In his dual-role Samuel emerged as a unique offensive threat, becoming the first player since 1999 and third in NFL history to have at least 1,000 receiving yards, five receiving touchdowns and five rushing scores in the same season.

Along the way, Samuel averaged a league-leading 18.2 yards per catch and 6.2 yards per carry while scoring a combined 14 touchdowns. His 1,770 yards from scrimmage ranked third in the NFL and his eight rushing touchdowns were the most by a receiver in league history as he surged to All-Pro honors.

In three NFL seasons, Samuel has 167 receptions for 2,598 yards and 10 touchdowns with 550 rushing yards and 11 scores on the ground. He has played in 38 games, missing one in 2019 and 2021 and nine in 2020.

Samuel enjoyed a breakout in 2021, his third year in the league, and at times carried the entire San Francisco offense on his back. Samuel led the NFL with 18.2 yards per catch and scored 14 total touchdowns, eight of which were rushing scores. With second-year man Trey Lance taking over for Jimmy Garoppolo as the starting quarterback, it remains to be seen if Samuel will bear less of the burden on the ground moving forward.

It's possible the mobile Lance will take some of those opportunities for himself.

Whatever the case, expect Samuel to play a front-line role in this offense whether he's asked to continue handling that wide back role or if he's used exclusively as a receiver.