No change. That's clear as the San Francisco 49ers are still dealing with Deebo Samuel's trade request.
According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, things have remained in ‘status quo' with the star wide receiver's desire to leave the 49ers.
“I'm told status quo is really when he reported to minicamp; that's the last piece of news that we have here,” Fowler told SportsCenter. “Nothing else significant has happened behind the scenes between Samuel and the 49ers.”
The 49ers have stated that they have no plans to trade Samuel, who is coming off an All-Pro season. The 26-year-old recorded career-highs in most receiving and rushing stats for San Francisco last year.
Samuel will earn $4 million in the final year of his rookie contract. If they fail to reach a long-term deal, the team may use the franchise tag on him after the season.
“The 49ers are still hopeful that they can mend this relationship [and] come to a long-term agreement at some point,” Fowler added. “Could be closer to training camp or around then, but they'll chip away at this. And really, the trade market has sizzled; around draft time was really the best time to do that. Now, there really hasn't been a lot of buzz or traction.”
Samuel, meanwhile, requested a trade this offseason due to a stalemate in contract negotiations and dissatisfaction with his role in the team's offense. He is likely looking at the likes of Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams. Both left their previous teams and received new, massive contracts this offseason.
Earlier this offseason, 49ers general manager John Lynch stated that trading Samuel would be ‘foolish.'
“We all know what we have,” Lynch told NBC Sports Bay Area. “Some things have transpired… I think we'll be fine there, though. And I'm excited to have Deebo a part of us moving forward.”
Despite traditionally being a wide receiver, Samuel saw his role change in a big way as part of Kyle Shanahan's offense. As the previous season went on, the 49ers used him more as a running back. He was great, but come the playoffs, he had only 10 receptions versus 27 carries.
It seems, however, that Samuel intends to fulfill his mandatory obligations rather than force the issue with a training camp holdout. Despite no change in the negotiations between him and the San Francisco 49ers, he actually attended the team's mandatory minicamp.
Having said that, it may be prudent for the 49ers decisively reach a long-term agreement with Samuel before entering the new season.