Deebo Samuel: 49ers Better Than Eagles Despite Playoff Loss

Philadelphia blew out San Francisco, 31–7, in the NFC title game.

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel still seems to be holding a grudge against the Eagles after Philadelphia beat his team in this past season’s NFC championship game.

In a recent interview with Zion Olojede of Complex, Samuel expressed his “hatred” for the Eagles, and he went on to explain his belief that if the 49ers would have been healthy, they would’ve won.

Samuel was asked about fellow 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk’s comment about the 49ers being “hands down” the best team in the league last season despite their disappointing loss in Philadelphia. Samuel agreed with Aiyuk’s comment, saying there was “no question” that his teammate was right. So, it sounds as if Samuel also thinks the 49ers are the NFL’s best team.

The Eagles blew out the 49ers in the NFC championship game, winning 31–7 to advance to the Super Bowl. The 49ers entered the matchup on a 12-game winning streak, with rookie quarterback Brock Purdy leading the charge in eight of those games.

Notably, Purdy left the game momentarily and was severely limited when he returned to the field. He basically was unable to throw, and it later was revealed he’d suffered a torn ligament in the elbow on his throwing arm. Samuel names Purdy’s injury as the biggest factor for why the 49ers lost the game.

“We lost because we played with 10 people,” Samuel told Complex. “I ain’t going to keep going on about what could’ve happened and what would’ve happened but yeah, it would’ve definitely been a different outcome.”

There is a lot of hype surrounding the 49ers heading into the 2023 season. San Francisco currently has the second-best odds (+800) to win Super Bowl LVIII, tied with the Eagles and Bills, according to SI Sportsbook.