The San Francisco 49ers managed to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC thanks to their resurgence on both sides of the ball.
Although the 49ers have made a number of investments to shore up their star power in recent years, they were able to get plenty of return from their promising rookie class. Headlining the 2019 NFL Draft for them were defensive end Nick Bosa and wide receiver Deebo Samuel.
Bosa has fit the billing as a No. 2 overall pick by establishing himself as the front-runner for Defensive Rookie of the Year. While his stellar play took the league by storm this season, it largely overshadowed the emergence of Samuel as a future No. 1 option in the passing game.
The 23-year-old struggled to find his footing in the 49ers' offense to start the year after averaging just 32.4 receiving yards per game in the first seven games of his career. Fortunately, he was finally able to kick things up a notch in the second half of the season and ultimately finished with 81 receptions for 802 yards and three touchdowns.
Of course, Samuel's development could be attributed to both the arrival of wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders at the trade deadline and the improved health of tight end George Kittle. Having another viable option for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to throw to on the outside seemingly helped open things up for the rookie after registering all three 100-yard receiving outings with Sanders in town.
Regardless, this allowed Samuel to essentially get better adjusted to playing at the next level and it clearly paid huge dividends for his development set down the stretch of San Francisco 13-3 finish. This included flashing his versatility as a playmaker by also rushing for 159 yards and three touchdowns on 11.4 yards per carry.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan deserves plenty of credit for finding ways to get Samuel more involved by better utilizing his skill set with some creative play designs. It is safe to say that the former second-round pick took full advantage by providing the 49ers with plenty of bang for their buck with his stellar play this season and will now be tasked with playing an integral role in the offense for San Francisco as they get set for a run at the Super Bowl.
While Samuel may not be garnering any attention for Offensive Rookie of the Year, he still earns a solid B-minus for showing the necessary promise expected from a player taken in the early rounds
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