Who Should I Start? Deebo Samuel or Olamide Zaccheaus

Wednesday, May 1, 2:04 PM

The San Francisco 49ers were engaged in trade talks involving wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel leading up to the draft, but the team elected not to trade either of their star receivers, with all signs pointing toward both being on the 2024 roster. Aiyuk is entering the final year of his rookie deal, and the assumption was that he'd be the odd man out after the team paid Samuel and other star players. Samuel still has two years left on the deal he signed before the 2022 season. San Fran has been to at least the NFC Championship game in four of the last five seasons, and losing Aiyuk or Samuel would almost certainly make the team worse in 2024. The 49ers can afford to keep both this year, but an Aiyuk extension would likely reduce his $14.124 million salary cap number for 2024. Samuel's fantasy value would have likely taken a hit with a move out of the Bay Area.

Thursday, March 28, 4:36 PM

Free-agent wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus has agreed to terms to sign with the Washington Commanders, according to John Keim of ESPN. Zaccheaus was originally undrafted out of Virginia in the 2019 class, and he spent four seasons with the Atlanta Falcons before one year with the Philadelphia Eagles last season. Overall, the 26-year-old has hauled in 104 passes for 1,492 yards and 10 touchdowns through his first 72 NFL games. With Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson on the roster and Washington likely to take shots on wide receivers in next month's draft, Zaccheaus is unlikely to have a path toward fantasy success in 2024, barring injury. He's likely just a depth piece for a franchise looking to rebuild on the fly.