Deebo Samuel reportedly not 'budging' in wanting 49ers to trade him

Much has been said, written and denied since ESPN's Jeff Darlington first reported on Wednesday he'd been told by versatile offensive weapon Deebo Samuel that he wants to be traded by the San Francisco 49ers. 

Multiple individuals have suggested Samuel no longer wishes to be a dual-threat talent after he accumulated 1,405 receiving yards, 365 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns this past regular season, but the 26-year-old later took to Twitter to say only he, the 49ers and his agent "know the truth" before he ultimately deleted that tweet. 

As David Bonilla wrote for 49ers WebZone, Adam Schefter of ESPN speculated during an on-air segment Samuel no longer wants to play in California and instead prefers to be closer to his home of South Carolina, something the All-Pro selection laughed at via Instagram. 

Per Bonilla, Darlington appeared on "The Rich Eisen Show" on Thursday and provided somewhat of an update that didn't include any theories about Samuel's desire for a fresh start that presumably would include putting pen to paper on an extension past the final year of his rookie contract. 

"First of all, this is something that had been sort of percolating behind the scenes for several weeks at this point," Darlington explained. "The team had already been sort of aware that this was coming. It was basically to the point where Deebo, I think, just really wanted people, at this point, after washing his social media of any reference to the 49ers, taking it a step further and making it clear that he does in fact want to be traded."

Darlington added that "the 49ers really want Deebo on their team" and repeated a previous claim that San Francisco is "trying to do what it takes" to keep the offensive most valuable player with the organization. 

"I don't get the sense that Deebo is going about this with animosity, but I do get the sense that he very much has his feet in the ground on this," Darlington continued. "I personally don't see him budging. To your point, if some of those factors are things that the 49ers cannot rectify or remedy, that's a difficult task to overcome."

It remains to be seen if the relationship between player and club can be salvaged before the 2022 NFL Draft opens next Thursday night.