On Tuesday, I had the chance to catch up with Deebo Samuel to talk about a feature he took part in for the “O Films” Overtime series, sponsored by GMC. During the interview, I asked him what he would say to Odell Beckham Jr. if OBJ called to ask if he should sign with the 49ers. His response surprised me.
“Hey, man, I don’t get too much into all that stuff that I can’t control. That’s for the people up top. If they think he’s a great fit for our team, they’ll make a push for it. If they don’t, at the end of the day it is what it is.”
Multiple teams are pursuing Beckham Jr. right now, including the Bills, Packers, Giants, and Cowboys. Players from just about all of those teams have made pitches to OBJ to join their roster. Dallas, in particular has been openly recruiting the free agent wide receiver to join them for a playoff run.
If Beckham is looking for a tiebreaker, recruiting pitches from players could be it. Remember, Rams players made a public and private push last year to bring him into the fold. If the 49ers are going to win the OBJ sweepstakes, they made need some help from the other leaders in their locker room.
I could also understand if the skill players on the offense didn’t really have strong feelings about Beckham one way or the other. First off, he’s a 30-year-old wide receiver less than a year removed from his second torn ACL. Second, the 49ers are a run-first team that would actually prefer not to have to throw the ball that much. While Samuel, Aiyuk, and Kittle are team players, it’s only natural for them to want their opportunities as well. Adding OBJ to the mix only spreads those opportunities out even further. As John Lynch said, “How many footballs are we gonna play with?”
The full interview with Deebo is live now in the Gold Standard podcast, which you can find everywhere. Subscribe now so you don’t miss the next great guest!
Loading comments...