Mile High Report
The San Francisco 49ers have given Deebo Samuel a permission to seek a trade. Should the Denver Broncos be interested in acquiring him?
With the offseason officially here, our focus the next few months will be covering how the Denver Broncos can get and will get better over the course of free agency and the 2025 NFL Draft. One area I suspect the Broncos may pursue an addition is at wide receiver.
The team has already been linked to Garrett Wilson and Cooper Kupp, but another name recently popped on the radar. After the Super Bowl, it didn’t take long for some major news to break across the National Football League. One of the first big tidbits to drop were reports that the San Francisco 49ers are allowing veteran wide receiver Deebo Samuel to request a trade.
And wouldn’t you know it? Just a day later, Samuel named the Broncos as a team to watch out for and believes they could be special. According to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport, with this being a player-driven trade idea and Denver having Bo Nix at quarterback, the potential for Denver being a true landing spot for Samuel does make sense.
Sometimes little ripples like this can turn out to be waves. It remains to be seen if the Broncos have interest in acquiring the 29-year-old veteran wide receiver, but I’m sure talks will heat up once teams assemble in Indianapolis for this year’s NFL Combine. That’s still a few weeks aways, but it never hurts to check the pulse on how Broncos Country would feel about such a move.
Earlier in the week, SB Nation’s Reacts asked Broncos’ fans whether or not they’d be in favor of acquiring Samuel. Only 40-percent said yes. I’ll add a poll to this post and see if the results are any different. Let’s take a look at reasons why the Broncos should and shouldn’t pursue Samuel.
Recapping Deebo Samuel’s career with the 49ers
A second-round selection for the 49ers in 2019, Samuel’s breakout season was in 2021. For his efforts, he earned first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors after posting 77 receptions for 1,405 yards and 6 touchdowns. He also added 59 rushes for 365 yards and 8 touchdowns.
Since then, Samuel’s production on offense has steadily declined. Though in 2023 and 2024 he did amass over 1,000 all-purpose yards. Though this past season, he only made that mark by accruing 533 kick return yards and averaged over 31 yards on them. His receiving and rushing numbers were far less than ‘21.
In six seasons with the 49ers, Samuel played in 81 games with 73 starts. He has reeled in 334 receptions for 4,792 yards and 22 touchdowns. On top of that, he has rushed the ball 202 times for 1,142 yards and 20 touchdowns.
The case for the Broncos acquiring Samuel via trade
One of the primary reasons Denver should kick the tires on a potential trade for Samuel is cost. All factors considered, a...
