Star 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel continued his dominant stretch of play in San Francisco's 45-29 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday at State Farm Stadium, catching four passes for 48 yards and two touchdowns.
In the blowout, the 49ers’ fifth-year wideout made NFL history, becoming the 12th wide receiver in NFL history to score seven touchdowns in a three-game span.
Samuel appeared on the “Up & Adams Show" with Kay Adams on Tuesday, expressing surprise at his spot on a list decorated with Pro Football Hall of Famers.
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“That’s a lot of good company right there,” Samuel told Adams. “That’s just crazy. I didn’t know anything about it or anything along those lines. Just looking at the names on the list, that’s just crazy company around there.”
Samuel etched his name beside Jerry Rice, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss, Sterling Sharpe, Doug Baldwin, Harold Jackson, Dwayne Bow, Carl Pickens, Roy Green, Drew Bennett and Wes Chandler.
In addition to scoring two touchdowns against the Cardinals in Week 15, Samuel earned five touchdowns between Weeks 13 and 14 against the Philadelphia Eagles and Seattle Seahawks.
San Francisco 49ers
In Arizona, one score came when Brock Purdy found Samuel alone in the end zone, which was astonishing to the receiver.
“What’s so crazy is that we were watching film all week on certain stuff that we can do,” Samuel said to Adams. “And Kyle [Shanahan] put this play in, and I was like, ‘It’s wide open in practice, so in the game, there’s no way it’s going to be this wide open.’ It came around and nobody paid attention and obviously, I was wide open, which is crazy.”
Samuel’s second score at State Farm Stadium was much more difficult, as Purdy had to deliver a perfect back-shoulder ball in the corner of the end zone, where only No. 19 could get it.
“Here, [Brock Purdy] put the ball only where I could catch it,” Samuel explained to Adams. “As you can see, it was good coverage. As a receiver, you got to play it slow and don’t allow the DB to know the ball is being thrown back-shoulder. As soon as I turned around, that was one hell of a ball from Brock.
"All year long in camp and stuff like that, we work on deep balls. We’re hitting a few as the year goes on. Not only are [opposing defenses] covering us in the middle of the field, you got to cover the whole field because you never know what Brock’s going to do when he’s got the ball in his hand.”
Samuel’s stellar play has helped propel San Francisco to its 11-3 record and the top spot in the NFC.
With the 2024 NFL playoffs nearing, Samuel must continue his historic play to aid the 49ers in their chase for the franchise’s sixth Super Bowl.