49ers Rumors: Deebo Samuel Won't Be Traded; Patriots Haven't Inquired About WR

Despite rumors that the New England Patriots are interested in Deebo Samuel, it doesn't sound like the San Francisco 49ers are even going to entertain trade offers for the 2021 All-Pro wide receiver.

Per Albert Breer of The MMQB and NBC Sports Boston, someone with the 49ers "who'd absolutely know on this" situation said the Patriots "haven't called" about Samuel and they are "not trading him" anyway.

The rumor was started by James Stewart of 98.5 The Sports Hub on Wednesday's episode of Felger and Mazz.

"I heard the Patriots, I got a text message from an NFL talent evaluator that the Patriots are sniffing around Deebo Samuel," Stewart said.

It would make sense for the Patriots to be exploring every possible avenue to land a No. 1 wide receiver this offseason after whiffing on the position in the draft and free agency recently.

It's still too early to make a call on Tyquan Thornton, New England's second-round pick last year, but they could have selected Samuel in 2019 before they elected to take N'Keal Harry at No. 32 overall. Samuel went to the 49ers four picks after Harry was taken.

Jakobi Meyers, who led the Patriots with 804 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 2022, is set to become a free agent this offseason. No other player had more than 539 receiving yards last season for New England.

The Patriots do have some flexibility to add big contracts to their salary cap for 2023. They currently have $38.4 million in cap space without any major free agents to re-sign, with Meyers and Jonathan Jones their best pending free agents.

Even if Samuel was a player the Patriots wanted to bring in, though, it would make no sense for the 49ers to trade him this offseason. His contract contains a $35.2 million dead-cap hit in 2023, compared to an $8.7 million cap hit.

San Francisco is starting the offseason with $3.2 million in cap space and with key starters like Jimmie Ward, Mike McGlinchey and Azeez Al-Shaair set to hit free agency.

Samuel is also an integral part of the offense for a 49ers team that is going to have Super Bowl aspirations next season after losing in the NFC Championship Game. The 27-year-old had 864 yards from scrimmage and five total touchdowns in 13 games during the 2022 campaign.