As we gear up to the start of the NFL season, Football Absurdity is going to bring you a comprehensive breakdown of every notable player that will be available in fantasy football drafts. We only look at the past three seasons for a player. This is because anyone who is looking at 2016 to figure out what to do in 2020 had better be HBO wondering how PBS managed to stave off a defamation lawsuit by the American Association of Grouches. Deebo Samuel had a promising rookie year, how far will he go in 2020 now that he has something no other wide receiver in NFL history has ever had?
Deebo Samuel ADP and AAV:
Standard: WR26, 60 overall
PPR: WR35, 85 overall
Average Auction Value: $6
Deebo Samuel Statistics:
| Year | 2019 |
| G | 15 |
| GS | 11 |
| Tgt | 81 |
| Rec | 57 |
| Yards | 802 |
| TD | 3 |
| Tgt/G | 5.06 |
| Rec/G | 3.56 |
| Rec% | 70.4% |
| Yds/Tgt | 9.90 |
| Yds/Rec | 14.07 |
| Year | 2019 |
| Std Pts | 132.1 |
| HPPR Pts | 160.6 |
| PPR Pts | 189.1 |
| Pts/G | 8.8 |
| HPPR Pts/G | 10.7 |
| PPR Pts/G | 12.6 |
| Pts/Tgt | 1.63 |
| Pts/Tgt (HPPR) | 1.98 |
| Pts/Tgt (PPR) | 2.33 |
| Year | 2019 |
| Air Yards | 607 |
| aDOT | 7.5 |
| YAC | 473 |
| YAC/Tgt | 5.84 |
| YAC/Rec | 8.30 |
| YAC% | 59.0% |
| AYMS | 20% |
| Tgt MS | 18% |
Deebo Samuel Overview:
The Bad: Deebo Samuel suffered a Jones fracture in his foot during a throw-and-catch session in mid-June, necessitating surgery.
The Good: Early reports indicate that the surgery went well. With average recovery time, Samuel could be ready for the season opener.
The Questionable: Deebo tweeted out that surgery went “perfect,” that he would be “better than you have seen” and also “legendary.” This kind of loops me back around to, “maybe this didn’t go so well,” territory.
The Extremely Irritating: Last year another 49ers receiver, Trent Taylor, suffered the exact same fracture. His timetable was disrupted by an infection and he missed the whole season.
Right now, we don’t know that Samuel will be ready for week one. But it’s looking pretty likely, and we’ll know more in a month, so operate like he’s going to be fine and just check the news. Remain optimistic, because Deebo Samuel has something no other WR in NFL history has ever had… a second-year quarterback with six seasons of experience!
Did you scroll all the way down here just to see that reveal? Then, congratulations: You’ve been click-baited!
Click-baiting: It’s the latest craze that’s been sweeping the nation! But unlike most clickbait links, we actually provide decent content… and a huge prize! We’ll tell you what VALUABLE prize you’ve won in just a few paragraphs!
Seriously, Deebo Samuel really does benefit from a QB who may not become a top-five fantasy option, but is almost definitely going to improve after their first full season. I’m not going to say this QB’s name because that alerts the evil eye of my Editor-in-Chief to come in and spew sacrilege about how the 49ers are, like, the best team in the universe or something.
[Editor’s note: Jimmy is handsome, and good, and my friend.]
Deebo Samuel Draft Strategy
Deebo Samuel Auction Value: $8
Draft Ranking: Find out for your league settings in a Beersheet!
He’s an automatic buy if he falls under $10 or to the sixth round in any and all drafts. If you really like him and want to reach for him in the 5th round or ~$12, I’m not going to censure you. But do keep in mind WR2 is the deepest pool in fantasy drafts, so if you keep your possibilities open you will always grab one that falls pretty far.
Despite his injury, Deebo Samuel is now the #1 WR on an offense that’s pretty decent, but he’s falling to ~$5 in auctions and falling to the sixth round in a ton of drafts. That’s a steal for a guy who’s likely to be a set-it-and-forget-it WR2 in fantasy lineups once he’s back from his foot injury.
Best Case Scenario:
You grab Deebo and watch him soar into about 15th place among fantasy WRs. He somehow manages to replicate his three(!) rushing TDs from 2019. You find out that the VALUABLE prize you won is actually a deal for a free $5 credit when you sign up for Fan Duel, use the promo code ABSURDITY, and deposit just $10. They’ve got stuff to bet on even when it’s not football season!
Worst Case Scenario:
You get Deebo in the 5th round. I don’t know what you want me to say, here: He’s going to be at least a decent flex and bye week start like he was in 2019 (when he had another WR1 on the field and a QB going through their first full season). I like Deebo’s floor, which is the main thing I want in a WR2. Worst case scenario: You start watching Deebo’s games and fall in love with the 49ers. “Never Fall in Love” was the tagline for the famous 49ers film, Deebo-dyguard, so you know you messed up.
[Statistics are sourced from pro-football-reference.com and airyards.com]
