Samuel a no-show as OTAs begin
The practices remain voluntary, and the move was expected
Deebo Samuel showed up like the Bay Area superstar he's become — only he did so Sunday night in Dallas, where he mingled with Warriors stars' Stephen Curry and Draymond Green after their NBA playoffs win.
Monday morning, Samuel was a no-show as his 49ers' teammates opened organized team activities, the NFL Network reported.
It is an expected ab- sence, and officially it is an excused one because the nine OTA practices remain voluntary.
So goes Samuel's contentious route toward a contract extension.
Contentious, because he requested a trade last month, and the 49ers did not oblige, not when the offers didn't match the worth their perceived value of last year's offensive catalyst and All-Pro receiver.
Samuel already has missed the past month of the offseason program. Skipping the mandatory minicamp June 13-15 could cost him $93,000 in fines.
If he and the 49ers don't come to an accord by training camp in two months, then a holdout would subject him to $40,000 in daily fines, though he could avoid that by simply showing up and refusing to practice.
Samuel has been everywhere this offseason, except in the 49ers' good graces, and vice versa.
Sunday night, he sat in the second row of the Warriors' Game 3 win in the Western Conference finals against the host Dallas Mavericks. Afterward, Green greeted him courtside with a jersey in hand as a gift, then TNT later broadcast Samuel meeting with Curry outside the locker room.
It was a summit of the Bay Area's hottest-going sports stars.
Financially, Samuel should understandably want top dollar after establishing himself as such a dynamic threat as a receiver and rusher in his third NFL season.
Afterward, the wide receiver market went berserk, as top stars Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams got richer upon their trades to Miami and Las Vegas, respectively, while other receivers
such as Stefon Diggs, A.J. Brown and Christian Kirk also struck new deals.
The average annual value of contracts soared beyond $20 million and up to $30 million in Hill's case, all of which could peg Samuel midway through that span.
Samuel is due $4 million in the upcoming, final year of his rookie contract. He's been preparing for Year 4 by bouncing back and forth across the country, training in Florida, Southern California, his native South Carolina and now Texas.
Is Samuel truly a No. 1 wide receiver? Will he beat one-on-one coverage for the next decade? Will his body survive the physical pounding he dishes out, and will he report in shape at about 220 pounds?
Those are questions the 49ers surely are asking as they forge an inevitable contract extension. Those deals typically are awarded to homegrown stars later in the summer as camp nears or gets underway, as was the case with tight end George Kittle (five years, $75 million) and linebacker Fred Warner (five years, $95 million).
General manager John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan professed their love and appreciation for Samuel before and after the draft, which unofficially served as a trade deadline.
Samuel hasn't spoken to the media since confirming his trade request to ESPN in April. He remains active on social media, mostly via Instagram Stories, where he often posts videos of himself singing in his car, including a post last night while driving 80 mph and one Monday of him at an Austin boxing gym.
Tight end George Kittle, in an interview Friday on “The Pat McAfee Show,” said he recently spoke with Samuel.
“He seems like he's in a good place,” Kittle said. “I think Deebo knows this team loves him, we'd love to have him here, and if he wants to play somewhere else then hey, it is what it is. It's a business, so I wish him nothing but the best of luck if he goes somewhere else.”
The 49ers surely would love Samuel's presence at OTAs, even if he refused to run a route until pen is put to paper on a deal. There were multiple times last season when Samuel would be limited or kept from practice to let his body recover -- and he'd be seen chatting up Shanahan. Good vibes galore back then.
Now, Trey Lance takes control of a Samuel-less offense; Jimmy Garoppolo is also an expected no-show because of March shoulder surgery.
The 49ers' receiving corps will be led by Brandon Aiyuk, and complemented by Jauan Jennings, Ray-Ray McCloud, rookie Danny Gray and veterans Marcus Johnson, Malik Turner and KeeSean Johnson. The door is open for one of them, or a young newcomer, to seize the No. 6 role, and that could come down to special teams presence as a gunner.
That's still a better situation than what is unfolding with NFC West counterpart Arizona. The Cardinals' quarterback, Kyler Murray, is not showing up at their OTAs while amid his own contract squabble.
The 49ers' OTA debut Monday was closed to the media. Today's will allow reporters to view practice for the first time in four months, the first time since Samuel and the 49ers prepared for the NFC Championship Game. NEW TIGHT END COMES ABOARD >> Journeyman tight end Tyler Kroft signed a one-year deal with the 49ers, according to his agent, Mike McCartney.
Kroft has played for the Bengals, Bills and Jets, and the first of his 13 career touchdowns came against the 49ers as a 2015 rookie with the Bengals.