Deebo Samuel's Contract Extension Recommended by 49ers HC Shanahan amid Trade Rumors

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan supported the idea of the Niners signing wide receiver Deebo Samuel to a contract extension Tuesday.

According to Albert Breer of The MMQB, Shanahan said "I'd recommend it" when asked about extending Samuel.

Shanahan's comment came on the heels of ESPN's Rich Cimini reporting Sunday the New York Jets are "keeping an eye on the situations" of top wideouts who could be free agents at the end of the 2022 season, including Samuel.

Given how important Samuel was to San Francisco's offensive success last season, it is difficult to envision the Niners letting him go. Even if an extension can't be reached, one can only assume that he will be franchise-tagged before the 2023 season at the very least.

This offseason has shown that perhaps no player is off-limits at the wide receiver position, though, as the Green Bay Packers traded Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders and the Kansas City Chiefs traded Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins rather than signing them to extensions.

Samuel's situation is even more complicated since he was essentially a dual wide receiver and running back last season, meaning he may want to be paid for both roles.

After making a significant impact as a rookie second-round pick in 2019 with 802 receiving yards and six total touchdowns, Samuel was ravaged by injuries in 2020 and limited to just seven games.

He bounced back in a huge way in 2021, however, and turned in one of the most remarkable seasons by a wide receiver in recent memory.

In addition to racking up 77 receptions for 1,405 yards and six receiving touchdowns—all of which were career highs—he made life miserable for opposing defenses as a ball-carrier as well, rushing for 365 yards and eight scores.

With the conservative Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback last season, the 49ers leaned heavily on their rushing attack and the short passing game, and Samuel was featured heavily in both.

All signs point toward the Niners going with 2021 No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance at quarterback in 2022, and while he has a much bigger arm than Jimmy G, one can only assume Shanahan will try to keep things simple for him early in his career as a starter, meaning lots of plays designed to get the ball in Deebo's hands.

That strategy worked so well last season that it surprisingly got San Francisco to the NFC Championship Game, so there is little reason for Shanahan and the offensive coaching staff to stray from it.

One concern with Samuel that doesn't exist as much with other wide receivers is the idea that he might get beaten up more physically because he takes more hits compared to a normal wideout.

That may play into any potential reluctance on the 49ers' part to commit to him long term, and it might be a case of the organization wanting to see if he can hold up health-wise for a second consecutive season.

Samuel also has only one year of elite production to his credit, and the delay could be a case of general manager John Lynch and Co. wanting to see more of that in 2022.