49ers HC Kyle Shanahan Advises Deebo Samuel to Tune Out the Noise

Deebo Samuel has been the target of heavy criticism from 49ers fans ever since he put his hands on the neck of longsnapper Taybor Pepper a few weeks ago.

Nov 10, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. (1) against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers prior to the game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Deebo Samuel has been the target of heavy criticism from 49ers fans ever since he put his hands on the neck of longsnapper Taybor Pepper a few weeks ago.

Since that incident, Samuel has gained just 97 yards from scrimmage in four games, and fans have let him hear about it on social media. On Monday, he finally responded, saying he's not struggling, he's just not getting the ball. Then he deleted the tweet.

On Tuesday, Kyle Shanahan was asked to respond to Samuel's frustrations. Here's what Shanahan said, courtesy of the 49ers p.r. department.

Q: I know you hate social media, but yesterday, WR Deebo Samuel Sr.--?

SHANAHAN: “I don't hate it.”

Q: Well, it's not your favorite thing in the world. You don't use it.

SHANAHAN: “I don't know how to do it.”

Q: You don’t know how to do it. Well, Deebo knows how to do social media though, and so yesterday he said that he's not struggling, he's just not getting the ball. Has he expressed any frustration with you in terms of targets and production?

SHANAHAN: “Deebo and I talk every day, I understand Deebo saying that, Deebo wants to help us out and the only way he helps us out is getting the ball more, and we'd like to get it to him more and we'll continue to work at that.”

Q: When he does that, obviously, it's more than just saying that. It can create a distraction, or people can perceive that in different ways. Maybe it can't be good for the team. Do you have any problems with that or have you talked to him about, “Hey, maybe just keep that in-house?"

SHANAHAN: “Yeah, we'd always love things to stay in-house. That's probably why I don't mess with social media. I'm sure I'd get worked up and stuff too if I was reading stuff about myself all the time. And then I'd maybe make a tweet or something too. I mean is it a distraction in our building? No. I’ve got to answer questions about, it's the first time I've talked about it is right here. But Deebo and I see each other every day and talk about stuff every day. So my advice is to not let the outside frustrate you, because just answering those things isn't going to help you in any way. Usually only hurts you. But as far as like what we deal with and our relationships and our team, it's water under the bridge.”

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