Deebo Samuel is returning to the Bay.
As a San Francisco 49ers spokesman confirmed to The Daily Mail late Thursday, the 30-year-old wide receiver has agreed to re-join the team following his one-year stint with the Washington Commanders.
Details of the deal were not immediately available, but NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport is reporting the agreement is for one year and up to $7 million. The Daily Mail has sought comment from Samuel’s agents.
Samuel’s return comes as the 49ers face an impasse with disgruntled receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who remains absent from training camp after demanding a trade, and a potential season-ending knee surgery for third-year wideout Ricky Pearsall.
Although he’s no longer the player that recorded 1,770 total yards and 14 touchdowns in 2021, when he was named an All-Pro, Samuel remained productive after going to Washington for a fifth-round pick last season. In 16 games with the Commanders, the versatile and rugged receiver had 727 yards and five touchdowns on 72 receptions.
It should be interesting to see if Samuel becomes a threat out of the backfield again in head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense. Between 2021 and 2024, the South Carolina product ran the ball 180 times for the 49ers, racking up 958 yards and 17 touchdowns.
Deebo Samuel played the 2025 season in Washington, but is now returning to the Bay
The re-acquisition of Samuel comes as the Niners face an impasse with Brandon Aiyuk
The Niners could lose Ricky Pearsall to a season-ending knee surgery, but that isn’t certain yet
‘Kyle Shanahan already drawing up those Deebo gadget plays as we speak,’ one fan wrote on X.
Aiyuk, meanwhile, has faced significant criticism for a number of recent actions, including the crude jokes he made about Shanahan’s recent car crash.
‘You can’t win the race if you crash out,’ Aiyuk said about Shanahan, who suffered a broken hand, three broken ribs and a concussion in a crash that nearly cost him his eye.
Aiyuk has been lashing out on social media for months and was recently the subject of an arrest warrant in California over a December YouTube post purportedly showing him driving a Cadillac at over 100mph. It was around that time the team placed Aiyuk on the reserve list with a ‘left squad’ designation as Shanahan admitted he had not seen Aiyuk ‘in forever.’
Things have only gotten worse for Aiyuk, who was slammed recently for posting video in which he appeared to kick one of his dogs. He also recently fired his agents.
Aiyuk’s career was undeniably impressive from 2020, when he was a third-round pick by the Niners out of Arizona State, and 2024, when he signed a four-year, $120 million extension only to tear his ACL and MCL.
He’d go on to miss the entire 2025 season and has since ordered the team to trade him, while demand for his services has yet to materialize.
One thing is clear: Aiyuk is done with the 49ers.
‘I will not be reinstating with them or ever doing any kind of business with them,’ he wrote on Instagram.
Brandon Aiyuk has been attacking his perceived enemies on YouTube and Instagram
Police in Palo Alto, California are refusing to release body-cam footage or an accident report from the aftermath Kyle Shanahan’s harrowing car crash
Join the discussion
How should the 49ers handle stars who clash with coaches and demand trades?
As for Shanahan, he remains away from the team as he recovers from the July 14 crash. In his place, long-time 49ers assistant Chris Foerster has assumed Shanahan’s role.
Foerster has worked extensively with Samuel since the two first arrived in the Bay back in 2019.
Samuel was a cap casualty after the 2024 season when 49ers President John Lynch traded him to the Commanders, who guaranteed the receiver’s $17 million 2025 salary.
‘What a reunion!’ one fan wrote on X. ‘Deebo back in a 49ers uniform is going to be exciting to watch.’
