Deebo Samuel didn’t do himself any favors on Thursday night to convince anyone that he hasn’t been struggling this year.
The 49ers wide receiver made three catches in San Francisco’s 12-6 loss to the Rams, but he also had an ugly drop in the middle of the third quarter with the game still tied.
The crucial drop came with the 49ers deep in Rams territory on third-and-10, when it looked as though it would be a chance for San Francisco to at least pick up the first down.
San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy dropped back and found Samuel for what should have been a nice gain.
Samuel appeared as though he had the ball, but he somehow dropped it, much to the astonishment of just about everyone — including himself.
The dropped pass forced the 49ers to settle for a field goal, though the lead didn’t last long before Los Angeles answered back with one of their own on the ensuing drive.
Samuel was targeted seven times, and the three catches that he did make were for 16 yards.
It was far from the showing the wide receiver was likely looking for after doubling down on his frustration over the way he was being used by the 49ers offense this season.
On Monday, he posted to X: “Not struggling at all just not getting the ball!”
Samuel ended up deleting the post and later wrote on the social media platform that he wasn’t “hating” on any of his teammates.
But when it was brought up by reporters on Tuesday, he doubled down on his comments.
“You read what you read,” Samuel said, per ESPN. “[I’m] a little frustrated for sure.”
After Thursday, it’s hard to imagine his frustrations will subside anytime soon.
The wide receiver is in the middle of a down year and entered Thursday’s game with just 553 receiving yards and one touchdown.
