It’s that time of year once again! Football Absurdity will bring you a breakdown of every notable fantasy football-relevant player throughout June, July, and August. We continue with the running backs. Deebo Samuel… wait a second, we continue with the wide receivers! Deebo Samuel played as much running back as wide receiver down the stretch last year to the point that it strained his relationship with the 49ers. There are rumors that he wants out of the friendly confines of Levi’s Stadium, but this particular 49ers fan isn’t convinced that will happen. What will happen with Deebo Samuel in 2022, and what does it mean for our fantasy football leagues? Let’s take a look at his fantasy football player profile!
Deebo Samuel ADP and AAV:
Average Draft Position: WR7, 16 overall
Average Auction Value: $38.0
Deebo Samuel Statistics:
| Year | G | GS | Tgt | Rec | Yards | TD | Tgt/G | Rec/G | Rec% | Yds/Tgt | Yds/Rec |
| 2021 | 16 | 15 | 121 | 77 | 1405 | 6 | 8.07 | 4.81 | 63.6% | 11.61 | 18.25 |
| 2020 | 7 | 5 | 44 | 33 | 391 | 1 | 8.80 | 4.71 | 75.0% | 8.89 | 11.85 |
| 2019 | 15 | 11 | 81 | 57 | 802 | 3 | 5.06 | 3.56 | 70.4% | 9.90 | 14.07 |
| Year | Std Pts | HPPR Pts | PPR Pts | Pts/G | HPPR Pts/G | PPR Pts/G | Pts/Tgt | HPPR Pts/Tgt | PPR Pts/Tgt |
| 2021 | 262.0 | 300.5 | 339.0 | 16.4 | 18.8 | 21.2 | 2.17 | 2.48 | 2.80 |
| 2020 | 47.7 | 64.2 | 80.7 | 6.8 | 9.2 | 11.5 | 1.08 | 1.46 | 1.83 |
| 2019 | 132.1 | 160.6 | 189.1 | 8.8 | 10.7 | 12.6 | 1.63 | 1.98 | 2.33 |
| Year | Air Yards | aDOT | YAC | YAC/Tgt | YAC/Rec | AYMS | Tgt MS |
| 2021 | 1029 | 9 | 772 | 6.43 | 10.03 | 29% | 26% |
| 2020 | 97 | 2.2 | 398 | 9.05 | 12.06 | 4% | 22% |
| 2019 | 607 | 7.5 | 473 | 5.84 | 8.30 | 20% | 18% |
2022 Deebo Samuel Fantasy Football Overview:
From an outside observer, it might seem as though there is a lot up in the air about Deebo Samuel, at least from a “what uniform will Deebo Samuel wear in 2022?” perspective. Because he’s going to be a 49er. He’s in camp, he’s under contract, and he’s stopped loudly complaining about wanting to be traded. The cash for his contract extension, unfortunately, is tied up in Jimmy Garoppolo’s surgically repaired shoulder. Once Garoppolo is off the roster, then Deebo will get his contract and everyone will be happy.
Another part of the Deebo Samuel Saga revolves around his desire to no longer be used as a running back. Between the regular season and the playoffs last year, Deebo ran the ball 86 times. However, only six of these rush attempts came in the first eight games of the season. The remaining 80 came when the 49ers turned to Trey Sermon and Jeff Wilson Jr. out of necessity, and they ran the ball 29 times for 82 yards against the Jaguars. Not exactly thrilling, there. The 49ers have signaled they will move on from needing Deebo to run the football by drafting Tyrion Davis-Price in the third round of the draft, to give them TDP, Elijah Mitchell, and Trey Sermon as three young running backs under contract for 2022.
But, some want to say that this will crush Deebo’s role. It won’t. Even before Deebo Samuel became a running back, he was one of the most prolific wide receivers in the NFL in 2021. In those first eight games, wherein he had just six rush attempts, he averaged six catches for 110 yards per game, totaling over 100 yards in half of his first eight contests and pacing out to finish with over 100 catches, over 1800 yards, and 10 touchdowns. So, Deebo Samuel was a beast even before Kyle Shanahan decided to turn him into a running back. That shouldn’t be a problem with Trey Lance under center in 2022.
2022 Deebo Samuel Fantasy Football Draft Strategy:
Deebo Samuel Salary Cap Value: $40
Draft Ranking: Find out for your league settings in a Beersheet!
There’s a lot of manufactured consternation and hand-wringing surrounding Deebo Samuel in the 2022 fantasy football draft season. And all of it comes down to the question marks surrounding his destination this season, and I am here to tell you his destination will be the same as his starting point: San Francisco. So, think about Deebo as being on the 49ers, and figure out where you’ll take the best offensive weapon on the team in 2022. Would you take him as a top-five wide receiver? Because that’s where he’s going to be in 2022.
Right now, in salary cap drafts, Deebo Samuel is the WR7 by draft price ($37.5) and he represents a mini-tier before you get into the Mike Evans/Tyreek Hill/Keenan Allen tier around $31. I like him there for that price, as he’s the last wide receiver who has legitimate top-three upside, and you can snag him and A.J. Brown ($25) or Michael Pittman ($21) for what your leaguemate spent on Cooper Kupp.
In snake drafts, Deebo’s value is a bit tougher to swallow, as he’s picked #18 off the board, and WR6 overall. I’m not big on the mid-second-round wide receivers, and Deebo is not an exception to that. But, that has more to do with my undying love for Aaron Jones than anything else. If you’re in the WR market in the middle of the second, your choices are Deebo Samuel, CeeDee Lamb, and Tyreek Hill. I prefer Deebo out of those three receivers.
Best Case Scenario:
Deebo Samuel goes back to averaging 110 yards per game with Trey Lance.
Worst Case Scenario:
Did you know that Deebo Samuel left a game in 2020 after one touch in week fourteen, and it was his last touch of the year?
Check out all our 2022 player profiles, here.
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[Statistics are sourced from pro-football-reference.com, airyards.com, and ftnfantasy.com]
