Deebo Samuel traded to Washington: The Dynasty Fantasy Football Impact
In what seemed to be a mere formality, now former 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel was traded to the Washington Commanders for a fifth-round pick. San Francisco wasn’t in a position to pay Samuel and fellow wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and he just had to go, so this is no big surprise. However, it’s a trade that has some ramifications in dynasty leagues, so let’s take a look at some players whose values have changed.
Deebo Samuel, WR WAS
The price tag for Washington is more than palatable as a fifth-round pick seems more than reasonable. He’ll slot in alongside Terry McLaurin to create a solid duo for star quarterback Jayden Daniels. As for Samuel’s dynasty value, that’s still tough to assess. There’s no doubting his talent, but he’s also three years removed from that magical 2021 season where he posted over 1,400 receiving yards, 365 rushing yards, and 14 touchdowns (all career highs).
The big question here is going to be his usage rate. If Washington employs him as a dual threat the way San Francisco did years ago, this could lead to a nice uptick in value. However, if his carries are limited, it’s hard to see him providing higher than WR2 value since McLaurin is still going to be the top dog in the passing offense. Daniels looks to be good enough to keep the values of at least two wide receivers relatively high, but seeing Samuel as an elite option at this point still seems like a stretch. In short, his allure as a WR1 has long since faded, but his status as a WR2 should be safe.
Terry McLaurin, WR WAS
You can make a case this trade could negatively affect the value of McLaurin. However, that may also not make a lot of sense. It seems Washington is destined to sign him to an extension here soon and keep him in the fold as their top target. He was also fantastic last season with 82 catches for 1,096 yards and a career high 13 touchdowns. While predicting touchdowns is never a good idea, it’s hard to see the 25 from Jayden Daniels last season and think that number isn’t destined to go up as well. McLaurin ended the season scoring in eight of his last nine games (including the playoffs). If his chemistry with Daniels continues to grow, there’s no reason to think he can’t remain a WR1, especially once his contract is worked out.
Jayden Daniels, QB WAS
After being named Rookie of the Year, the sky seems to be the limit for Daniels in fantasy and reality. His rookie season featured 3,568 passing yards, 891 rushing yards, 31 touchdowns and just nine interceptions – not a bad debut. With Samuel on board, Daniels now has one more high-level target to use at his disposal and the Commanders are quickly becoming a destination for players both on the trade and free agent front. Players reportedly want to play with Daniels and for this franchise and that’s a major turn of events after they’d been middling in mediocrity for years. The addition of Samuel clearly isn’t a bad thing for a player who has cemented himself as an elite level QB1 in dynasty leagues.
Other Washington Wide Receivers
This group consists of Noah Brown, Olamide Zacchaeus, Dyami Brown, Jamison Crowder, Luke McCaffrey and others. The addition of Samuel (as well as some inevitable rookie additions) really makes this group no better than roster cloggers at the moment. While some of them have shown some real flashes of talent, it’s hard to look at any of them and justify taking too many rosters spots that could be filled by young rookies instead.
Brandon Aiyuk, WR SF
It looks like this deal should open up things even more for Aiyuk, who is recovering from a torn ACL. However, word is out now that the 49ers could be listening to trade offers for him as well. If Aiyuk stays, he should easily be in position to improve his production with Samuel gone. However, he needs to get healthy and back on the field for that to happen. In addition, his ultimate team may also now be in question. In the end, his value is stable at the moment after undergoing a predictable post-injury drop. There are just too many clouds in the sky to accurate judge his ultimate value right now, though.
Jauan Jennings, WR SF
If there’s a winner in this deal, it could very well be Jennings. As you can see, his dynasty value went from nothing to the top-100 in a hurry last year as he developed into a legitimate weapon in the offense. Still just 27 and entering his prime, it seems his 77/975/6 line from last year could just be a launching pad for better things to come. He very well could still be a “buy” candidate in dynasty leagues as he still has a runway to improve, especially if the 49ers move Samuel and Aiyuk.
Ricky Pearsall, WR SF
Pearsall also showed some signs of real progress last year. While his 31 catches for 400 yards and three touchdowns don’t jump off the page, you can see his talent has translated well to the NFL level. With what’s looking like a re-tooled receiving corps, Pearsall’s 46 targets from last year look like a floor for years to come. He should make a nice second-year leap and the 49ers wouldn’t have been excited to send Samuel away if they didn’t believe he could be a big part of their offense.
Brock Purdy, QB SF
Purdy took a little bit of a step back last year as his completion percentage (65.9), passing yards (3,864), touchdowns (20) and QBR (67.9) all went down while his interception total (12) went up. It was a disappointing second season as the unquestioned starter and while he remains just that, he needs to show more to reinforce to dynasty managers that he can be more than a QB2 and player a franchise can be built around. Losing Samuel won’t help and if Aiyuk moves on, it could be even tougher. George Kittle stands to gain some value here as well but they’ll need to have other players step up, Purdy included.
Ken is on Twitter at DLF_KenK
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