Deebo Samuel Sr. Fantasy Football Outlook (ROS)

By Andrew Erickson (FantasyPros), Mon, Nov 25th 2024, 8:40pm EST

Deebo Samuel Sr. made the most of his lone catch on four targets, gaining 21 yards with a significant 26 yards after the catch. He only played 67% of the snaps same as Ricky Pearsall (zero targets) but was second on the team in routes run. The usage wasn't bad for Samuel, but he's just not being featured or making the most of his opportunities.
I thought it was interesting on the broadcast that during a critical conversion attempt, Tom Brady listed off Jennings, McCaffrey and Kittle as the three players most likely to see the ball pre-snap. Samuel wasn't even mentioned. WOOF.
The 49ers struggled without Brock Purdy, and there's no guarantee he is ready for Buffalo in Week 13.
It's a tough matchup overall for WRs, putting into question whether Samuel can be trusted.
Last three games with CMC, Samuel is second on the team with a 20% target share, but he has just 10 receptions for 83 yards. In Week 12, he had two more drops and one of his targets led to an interception. Samuel only has two TDs scored this season despite nine total red-zone targets/attempts.
I think if Purdy misses another week, Samuel can be easily benched. If Purdy is back, I think fantasy managers still need to get Samuel back in lineups even after a disaster performance.
Samuel's worst game this season was against Arizona, and he followed it up with a 100-yard game versus Seattle. The Bills pass defense happily gives up a ton of underneath and dump-off targets, which has been Samuel's role in the offense. Even after his "older" age, Samuel still showed glimpses of his strong YAC self, with all his yards coming after the catch. He also had an impressive return on special teams.