Everything from his name to his overtly physical play style conjures up images of Ice Cube’s Friday, and that’s exactly why Deebo Samuel has been a consistent fan favorite throughout his past seven years in the National Football League. Having collected both a Pro Bowl nomination and an All-Pro title, as well as $82,428,766 in career earnings, he’s a shining example of how you don’t need to be a surefire Hall of Famer in order to have a successful career.
Advertisement
However, Samuel wasn’t always the intimidating force that he’s been revered as. In fact, during his rookie season in 2019, he quickly found out that professional football is much more serious than he had initially thought.
“A coach will walk into the meeting… And he’s only talking to you for 30 minutes,” Samuel recalled. At the time, the second-round draft pick thought he was doing better than he actually was, which apparently bothered the San Francisco 49ers‘ head coach, Kyle Shanahan, that much more.
“My rookie year,” he started. “You really don’t know how fast the pace is. I’m out there going in motion, cooling, and he just goes ‘See? This the dumb sh*t I’m talking about right here.'”
— football (@football845786) February 25, 2026
According to Samuel, Shanahan was notorious for playing “clip after clip,” effectively making players endure their own blooper reels. “He made the whole team meeting about one person.”
In hindsight, however, Samuel is likely a bit thankful to receive that level of criticism, as it would inevitably help him to become the 49ers’ leading receiver just two seasons later. His 1,405 yards, which remains his career best, included an 18.2 yards-per-reception average that led the league that season, ultimately earning him the aforementioned Pro Bowl and All-Pro titles.
After spending the first six seasons of his career with the 49ers, Samuel signed a one-year, $17.5-million contract with the Washington Commanders. He now finds himself as a pending free agent, and it is worth noting that there are some whispers of a potential reunion with San Francisco, which is now in the market for a wide receiver thanks to Brandon Aiyuk.
The Commanders have the fifth most cap space of any team in the league right now, and with Jayden Daniels needing as many weapons as possible right now, it’s just as possible that Samuel could remain in Washington as well. So despite him having a bit of obvious wear and tear, it seems as if there’s still a healthy market for Deebo after all.
