The San Francisco 49ers did not give up on re-signing Deebo Samuel to a lucrative extension even if the All-Pro wide receiver initially requested a trade.
In the end, their effort paid off as the 49ers and Samuel agreed to a three-year, $71.55 million deal.
The amount is right within the deals received by fellow 2019 draftees Terry McLaurin and DK Metcalf.
It also ends the drama between San Francisco and Samuel.
More importantly, the 49ers got the deal done even if a big cap hit is still on their books.
The 49ers re-signed Deebo Samuel with Jimmy Garoppolo still on the books. See, it was possible
— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) July 31, 2022
The Niners have been trying to trade Jimmy Garoppolo ever since they went with Trey Lance as their starting quarterback.
Aside from moving forward with their younger quarterback, San Francisco could also gain cap flexibility by getting rid of Garoppolo’s $24 million base salary in 2022.
Unfortunately, there have been no takers for the veteran play-caller through the offseason and the draft.
Their final window might have closed when the Carolina Panthers traded for Baker Mayfield.
The Cleveland Browns won’t seek another quarterback if Deshaun Watson will only miss six games.
However, the team is still not giving up on finding Garoppolo a new home.
But for them to pull off the trade, they might shoulder a huge portion of his 2022 salary.
What The 49ers Could Have Done
If the Niners are going all in on Lance, they could have cut Garoppolo early in the offseason to save money.
With him gone, they could have used the cap space to sign Samuel earlier or give Nick Bosa the extension he deserves.
While the 49ers have exercised their fifth-year option for Bosa, it would be better to lock him into a long-term deal as early as possible.
Otherwise, the market might go up and they might have to create more cap room to retain one of their top defensive players.
NEXT: Trey Lance Is Facing Extreme Expectations In 2022