49ers’ John Lynch confirms team won’t trade Deebo Samuel: ‘I’d be a fool to trade him’

There’s only one franchise Deebo Samuel will be playing for in 2022: The San Francisco 49ers. 

San Francisco general manager John Lynch smashed all trade talks regarding the franchise’s star wide receiver, who is reportedly seeking a new contract in the inflated receiver market this offseason. If Samuel gets that lucrative extension, the 49ers are banking they’ll be the franchise to give it to him. 

“Well, we haven’t traded him, and — I’ve used the word fool — I’d be a fool to trade him,” Lynch said at a Dwight Clark Legacy series event Wednesday night, via NFL.com. “So yes, Deebo will be part of the 49ers this season.”

Samuel did ask to be traded in April, but the 49ers have disinclined to acquiesce his request. Lynch has doubled down on Samuel staying with the 49ers, pointing out in March that he was working on a contract extension for Samuel to remain with the team. This was before the wide receiver market went haywire and many star receivers were dealt, most notably Tyreek Hill, Davante Adams, and A.J. Brown. 

Lynch isn’t parting ways with one of the best receivers in the game, especially with Trey Lance set up to enter his first season as the starting quarterback. Samuel finished with 77 catches for 1,405 yards and six touchdowns in 2021, leading the league with 18.2 yards per catch. He finished fifth in the NFL in receiving yards while also adding 59 carries for 365 yards and eight touchdowns on the year. 

Samuel is the first player in NFL history to have 1,400 receiving yards and 300 rushing yards in a season and is the third player with 1,000 receiving yards, five rushing touchdowns, and five receiving touchdowns in a season — the first wide receiver to accomplish the feat. 

The next step for the 49ers and Samuel is his participation in the team’s mandatory minicamp that starts June 13. The 49ers have had conversations with Samuel, but head coach Kyle Shanahan will not reveal them at this time. 

‘Nothing’s changed,” Shanahan said last month. “It’s conversations we have with Deebo and maybe some more that will come out eventually, but now’s not the time.”