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Kittle shares why Deebo is irreplaceable amid 49ers trade request originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area<\/em><\/p>\n With Deebo Samuel\u2019s 49ers tenure likely ending, his teammate George Kittle believes San Francisco will have a hard time replacing its longtime wide receiver.<\/p>\n Samuel requested a trade out of San Francisco earlier this month after six seasons with the team that originally selected him in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft. The former All-Pro enjoyed plenty of success in coach Kyle Shanahan\u2019s system thanks to his versatility \u2014 something Kittle believes the 49ers will miss.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t really replace Deebo,\u201d Kittle told Mackenzie Salmon of USA Today Sports this week. \u201cI think he\u2019s one of the most unique players in the NFL because of what he can do. He\u2019s the greatest, best YAC guy, besides myself \u2014 I\u2019ll hype myself up, I\u2019m pretty good at that, too. But he\u2019s so good when he gets the ball in his hands.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact that you can line him up in the slot, out wide, in the backfield and do all the fun stuff with him and he breaks tackles, he runs like a running back and he has the burst, he has the speed, and he has the agility to get away from guys, too. He\u2019s just such a unique player. I don\u2019t think you can really replace him.\u201d<\/p>\n Kittle and Samuel have been through plenty together during their time as teammates, including two Super Bowl losses and even starring together in the Netflix show \u201cReceiver\u201d last summer. And it\u2019s clear the tight end can\u2019t imagine a 49ers offense without Samuel.<\/p>\n The 29-year-old carved out an uncommon role with the 49ers as an all-purpose wide receiver, or a \u201cwide back,\u201d as many fondly call him, who recorded 1,143 yards and 20 touchdowns as a ball carrier with San Francisco. He had 202 rushing attempts, whether taking handoffs on jet sweeps or lining up in the backfield.<\/p>\n Kittle, Samuel and fellow receiver Brandon Aiyuk became known as the \u201cYAC Bros\u201d for their ability to break tackles and produce yards after contact. And while Samuel experienced a significant drop-off in production during the 2024 NFL season, recording career-lows of 3.4 catches for 44.7 yards per game, he still possesses the traits that made him an All-Pro in 2021.<\/p>\n It\u2019s no surprise there\u2019s league-wide interest in a multifaceted player like Samuel, who told ESPN\u2019s Adam Schefter on Feb. 9 that the 49ers have permitted him and his agent to find a trade partner this offseason. And it\u2019s no surprise to Kittle, either, who certainly will miss his YAC Bro if he leaves.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" George Kittle believes the San Francisco 49ers will have a hard time replacing longtime wide receiver Deebo Samuel if they grant his trade request.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":36731,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36730","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"\n