Who Should I Start? Deebo Samuel or Drake London

Wednesday, January 8, 3:30 PM

San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch said on Wednesday that the plan is to bring wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. back for the 2025 season. After signing receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) to a hefty extension before the start of the 2024 season, it was assumed that the Niners would likely move on from Samuel heading into 2025 given his significant salary-cap hit. In addition to the decision regarding the future of Samuel, who missed the Week 18 regular-season finale due to rib and wrist injuries, the 49ers will also be navigating a long-term extension for quarterback Brock Purdy. If the Niners change their mind on the 28-year-old Samuel, he could be a trade candidate with one year left on his deal. In 15 games in 2024, he had 51 catches for 670 yards and only three touchdowns despite Aiyuk and running back Christian McCaffrey (knee) missing significant time with injuries.

Sunday, January 5, 5:13 PM

Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London had a career day as he brought in ten of his 18 targets for 187 yards and two touchdowns during their overtime loss to the Carolina Panthers. This surpassed London's previous career-high of 172 yards he set during Week 14 of the 2023 season. Rookie Michael Penix Jr. leaned heavily on London in this contest as his 18 targets were 11 more than any other Atlanta pass-catcher. London found the end zone at the end of the second quarter on a 20-yard pass. London would score again in the fourth quarter on a 21-yard reception. The former first-round selection enjoyed the best season of his NFL career tallying 1,217 yards and nine total scores. This was the first time he surpassed 1,000 receiving yards in his career. London should be viewed as a high-end WR2 heading into the offseason.