It has been a few days, so the dust has settled for now, but it appears we are on the verge of yet another blockbuster NFL trade this offseason. This time it may involve one of the best young talents in the game in Deebo Samuel.
Jeff Darlington of ESPN reported late last week that the fourth-year wide receiver wants out of the Bay Area. Samuel doesn’t even want to discuss an extension with the team. Reports from Ian Rapoport expanded upon the news stating that he heard that Samuel was upset with the way he was being used. Whether it is the extra hits or that the team won’t pay him the value of two positions, it seems they are at a crossroads.
The team may want him to stay, they may even want to pay him $20+ million, but it seems Samuel doesn’t care at this point. Who may care, though, are the teams around the league. For example, the New York Jets were all in on the Tyreek Hill sweepstakes before losing him to Miami. Other teams are still searching for a premium receiver in their offense, so why not make a run at him.
Here are a couple of destinations that you, the fantasy player, can root for to maintain his value and help hemorrhage any loss in value.
New York Jets
It was eluded to earlier, and the Jets were all in on Hill. It would make sense they are all in on Samuel. The Jets have shown this offseason they will build around Zach Wilson sooner rather than later. They improved the tight end and offensive line groups; all that is missing is the receiver group. They have the fourth and tenth overall picks in the draft this week; throwing the tenth, and a couple of other picks at the 49ers may be enough to get things done.
Indianapolis Colts
The Colts seem to be in a win-now mode constantly since Chris Ballard became the general manager. That speaks to his roster-building ability through the draft, free agency, and trades. A couple of years ago, he traded his first-round pick for DeForest Buckner. Just last year, he traded this year’s pick for Carson Wentz. One panned out, one didn’t, but this shows he is aggressive. The Colts desperately need a number one receiver for newly acquired Matt Ryan, and Deebo Samuel would be perfect. Ryan isn’t getting any younger, so getting a receiver who can create after the catch would do him good in terms of longevity.
Atlanta Falcons
After talking about former Falcon Matt Ryan, why not have the Falcons get in on this deal? Arthur Smith at Tennessee found success with receiver A.J. Brown and Deebo Samuel could play a similar role. The teams showed this offseason to be aggressive. The acquisition of Samuel with a returning Calvin Ridley next year would set them up for long-term success. Not to mention, Samuel doesn’t want to be used in that hybrid type of role. In Atlanta, they already have Cordarrelle Patterson in that spot. I like this as a sneaky landing spot for the former South Carolina Gamecock.
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs have two first-round picks, and GM Brett Veach has taken the Les Snead approach before. They just traded away Tyreek Hill, obviously, and with that trade, they now have two picks in each of the first four rounds. Plenty of ammunition to get a trade done, and if the idea of Samuel with Pat Mahomes doesn’t excite you, seek medical attention immediately.
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