Deebo Samuel was ‘washed' and ‘fat' but now he's a top 49ers receiver again
· Yahoo Sports
A young Deebo Samuel needed guidance - and a jolt of motivation - to reach peak physical condition.
In 2019, after the San Francisco 49ers made him their second-round draft pick, Samuel showed up to rookie minicamp out of shape. So Wes Welker, the 49ers' receivers coach at the time, took him on daily 6 a.m., two-mile runs around Santa Clara. After practice, they ran sprints. Was it fun? Doubtful. But Welker's consistent prodding helped Samuel become a key contributor on a Super Bowl team as a first-year pro.
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Seven years later, Samuel is now 30, and he's been through it all in the NFL. He achieved superstar status. Requested a trade. Held out for a new contract. Got shipped off for a Day 3 draft pick. Waited out the free agent market for four-plus months.
When Samuel re-signed with the 49ers in late July, most viewed it as a low-risk, low-upside move. A nice off-speed pitch for Kyle Shanahan to dig out of his back pocket now and again.
But as injuries mounted among the 49ers' wide receivers, Samuel's role has had to grow. And he has continued to meet the moment. Three games into his Niners encore, the returns have been overwhelmingly positive. On the team, he trails only Christian McCaffrey in yards from scrimmage. He scored the longest touchdown of his NFL career Sunday - an 80-yard explosion down the left sideline off a hook-and-ladder - and reached 20.39 mph, the sixth-fastest top speed on a reception so far this season.
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Mike Evans (5) laterals to 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. (19), who runs it into the end zone for an 82-yard touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals in the first quarter during an NFL game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle)So, what's the secret sauce behind Samuel's early resurgence? Ask anyone inside the organization - or Samuel himself - and they insist there isn't one.
"I'm the same person every day. Literally, every day," Samuel told the Chronicle last Thursday, as he readied to get some shots up on the 49ers' locker room basketball hoop. "I like music, sitting in here playing cards. Just the normal, for real."
"It's been the same Deebo," Shanahan said.
"He's the same guy he's always been," cornerback Renardo Green said.
But does anybody really believe that? Samuel's changes are right in front of us. For starters, he no longer needs motivation from his position coach – he motivates himself. Samuel posted his stats from "Monday's Morning Run" on his Instagram story last week: 7'53" average pace, 247 calories burned, 158 cadence. On Tuesday, he posted another story with more numbers and a video of himself drenched in sweat. Every Tuesday morning, according to tight end George Kittle, Samuel takes off along the trail outside Levi's Stadium.
Samuel is clearly out to prove somebody wrong. Usually a man of few words, he briefly broke character in his postgame press conference Sunday, saying his 80-yard touchdown "showed the speed that people don't think I got."
"He's fast. He's Deebo," McCaffrey said. "I don't think he's lost a step or missed a step at all. I actually think the opposite."
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. (19) sheds tackles for a big gain against the Arizona Cardinals during an NFL game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. The 49ers won 36-30. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle)Samuel hasn't reached 900 receiving yards in five years. His average of 10.1 yards per reception last season with the Washington Commanders marked the lowest of his career. He has long heard the narrative that he's old, that he's overweight, that he's "washed." Even Samuel's own defensive coordinator chirps at him during practice.
"We brought ‘Fat Deebo' back, man," Morris joked Sept. 15 on the Pivot Podcast. "I call him fat every day. He's gonna punch me when I see him today, but he's that guy. He's been the guy for a long time."
As Morris hinted, the notion that Samuel is out of shape still eats at him. Asked about Morrs' comments during a brief conversation at his locker, Samuel quickly shut it down: "Yeah, next question."
Jacob Cowing, a rookie during Samuel's last stint with the 49ers in 2024, believes the veteran's a lot more explosive now than he was back then. McCaffrey even contributed the most overused compliment in sports, saying he thought Samuel showed up to training camp in the best shape of his life.
On Monday, Shanahan pushed back when asked about comments of that ilk. He believes Samuel has entered a number of seasons in great shape. But, he added, there is some truth to it, mainly in the way he has improved his off-field habits.
"It's also sleeping right, it's eating right, it's the type of conditioning you do on your own," Shanahan said. "That's where I'd say that you would notice the maturing … the most."
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. (19) ahead of an NFL game against the Miami Dolphins at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle)Kittle said Samuel still has all the "superstar tendencies," he just "needed the opportunity to do it on a team that knows what his talents are. And I think Kyle knows exactly who Deebo is."
And there's one more factor that has contributed to Samuel's resurgence, which is a bit harder to quantify.
"I think all Deebo needed was to play with the boys again," Kittle said. "Like, we drafted him. We all love Deebo. All of his best friends are here. When you play with people that you really care about, it elevates your level of play."
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