Deebo Samuel is heading back to where it all started, reuniting with the San Francisco 49ers on a one-year deal. Not long ago, he was one of the most dynamic weapons in all of fantasy football. Two straight down seasons have since raised real questions about whether he has anything left in the tank. Should fantasy managers take a chance on Samuel in 2026?
Should You Draft Deebo Samuel in Fantasy Football?
The version of Samuel that terrorized defenses in 2023 feels like a long time ago. That season, he averaged 16.3 PPR points per game, racked up more than 1,100 yards from scrimmage, and found the end zone 12 times in Kyle Shanahan’s system. He looked like one of the most unique offensive weapons in the entire league.
The two years since have painted a much bleaker picture. Samuel has failed to average even a dozen PPR points per game in each of the past two seasons. The two worst yards-per-route-run marks of his career have come in that span, and his ability to earn looks inside the red zone has cratered. For a player whose game was always built on physicality and yards after the catch, that is a worrying trend, because that style rarely ages gracefully.
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There is no sugarcoating the fact that Samuel is an imperfect player at this stage of his unusual career. He turns the corner into his 30s carrying legitimate questions about what he has left. This is simply not the dynamic, every-down threat he was a few seasons ago.
Here is the flip side, and it is the whole reason this situation is worth discussing. Samuel is returning to the exact system that drafted him and unlocked his best football. This staff knows precisely what he brings to the table and how to scheme touches for him.
FANTASY RANKINGS: PPR, Half-PPR, Non-PPR, Superflex, and More
The San Francisco 49ers also enter the year with a genuinely cloudy pass-catching group. George Kittle is working back from a January Achilles tear, and Christian Kirk is nursing a calf injury. The mishandling of Ricky Pearsall’s PCL sprain from last season now sees him likely missing the entire 2026 season.
Meanwhile, their prime free agent signing, a soon-to-be 33-year-old Mike Evans, is coming off a year of declining metrics and recurring hamstring issues. Rookie De’Zhaun Stribling, for his part, remains a complete unknown. That much uncertainty can open a door.
Samuel’s Redraft Fantasy Football Value
The honest starting point is that weekly startable value is a long shot for Samuel at this stage. His floor is shaky and his target competition, banged up as it may be, is still real. Anyone drafting him expecting a reliable lineup piece is likely to be disappointed. That is the bear case, and it is a fair one.
The appeal lives almost entirely in the price and the fit. Samuel is going to cost next to nothing in drafts, and there is real merit to making a cheap bet on the Brock Purdy and Shanahan combination.
Purdy remains one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the league, and the schedule offers a soft landing after a Week 1 date with the Rams. Matchups against the Dolphins and Cardinals in Weeks 2 and 3 are the kind of spots where this offense could Purdy go for 25+ fantasy points. That production has to go somewhere.
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My ranking reflects a player I am intrigued by rather than one I am counting on. I have Samuel at WR54, which frames him as a late-round dart with a puncher’s chance instead of a weekly starter.
Preseason Fantasy WR Rankings
- Ja’Marr Chase | CIN
- Puka Nacua | LAR
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA
- Amon-Ra St. Brown | DET
- Drake London | ATL
- Justin Jefferson | MIN
- CeeDee Lamb | DAL
- Nico Collins | HOU
- A.J. Brown | NE
- Malik Nabers | NYG
- George Pickens | DAL
- Chris Olave | NO
- Rashee Rice | KC
- Zay Flowers | BAL
- Jaylen Waddle | DEN
- Tee Higgins | CIN
- DeVonta Smith | PHI
- Ladd McConkey | LAC
- Terry McLaurin | WAS
- Emeka Egbuka | TB
- Tetairoa McMillan | CAR
- Garrett Wilson | NYJ
- Jameson Williams | DET
- Christian Watson | GB
- Luther Burden III | CHI
- Rome Odunze | CHI
- Parker Washington | JAX
- Carnell Tate | TEN
- DJ Moore | BUF
- Marvin Harrison Jr. | ARI
- Davante Adams | LAR
- Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX
- Quentin Johnston | LAC
- Mike Evans | SF
- Stefon Diggs | WAS
- Michael Wilson | ARI
- DK Metcalf | PIT
- Jakobi Meyers | JAX
- Josh Downs | IND
- Michael Pittman Jr. | PIT
- Jayden Reed | GB
- Courtland Sutton | DEN
- Wan’Dale Robinson | TEN
- Chris Godwin Jr. | TB
- Alec Pierce | IND
- Makai Lemon | PHI
- Jordan Addison | MIN
- De’Zhaun Stribling | SF
- Khalil Shakir | BUF
- Romeo Doubs | NE
