Report: 49ers facing potential 'quandary' with Deebo Samuel 

2021 San Francisco 49ers offensive Most Valuable Player Deebo Samuel is in the last year of his rookie contract and seemingly doesn't want to wait to get paid, particularly after he watched Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs earn a four-year extension reportedly worth $104 million with $70 million guaranteed. 

Samuel generated headlines last week when he scrubbed links to the 49ers from his Instagram profile in what individuals such as David Bonilla of 49ers WebZone assume is a negotiation tactic. The 26-year-old led the 49ers last season with 77 catches, 121 targets and 1,405 receiving yards to go along with six receiving touchdowns and 365 rushing yards and eight scores on 59 carries, but Peter King noted in his weekly "Football Morning in America" piece that the two sides may not be close to putting pen to paper on a new deal anytime soon. 

"I think the Niners are going to be in a quandary if Deebo Samuel insists on getting paid top of market, and getting paid now," King explained. "They might not be able to do that. Yes, I saw what he did over the last half of this season—Samuel was the MVP of a Final Four team in the playoffs. But his average receiving season over the past two years (55 catches, 898 yards) is dwarfed, for instance, by Diggs’ average over the past two years (115 catches, 1,380 yards). 

"Even when adding in the run-game impact, the stats are iffy. But Samuel has to be thinking: If they’re going to ask me to take the beating a running back takes, while asking me to be the deep threat for a playoff team, that’s something you don’t measure in stats. Dealing with Samuel is going to test the will and negotiating skill of GM John Lynch." 

The 49ers still have veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo on the roster and would save roughly $18.05 million in cap space by releasing him immediately, per Bonilla. Both Lynch and CEO Jed York suggested last month they don't want to lose Garoppolo at a discounted rate or for nothing, but an unhappy Samuel could change that situation sooner rather than later.