49ers HC Kyle Shanahan Says Taybor Pepper “Overreacted” to Deebo Samuel

I can't say I'm surprised.

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

A fight between teammates overshadowed the 49ers' most recent win.

During the fourth quarter when Jake Moody missed his third field goal of the game, wide receiver Deebo Samuel walked over to Moody and yelled at him to lock in. Then long snapper Taybor Pepper yelled something at Samuel in support of Moody. Then Samuel put his hand on Pepper's throat before walking away.

Today, Shanahan addressed the incident with the players. Here's what he said about the resolution courtesy of the 49ers p.r. department.

Q: Did you feel the need to address with the players the situation that occurred after Jake Moody’s final missed field goal?

SHANAHAN: “I didn't initially, after the game and stuff. I didn't think it was too big of a deal. But after getting home and seeing it all on SportsCenter and everything and all that stuff, I wanted to make sure I did. Talked to the guys about it, talked to a number of guys on the team. We squashed it and we're good.”

Q: You're satisfied with where things stand now?

SHANAHAN: “Oh yeah, totally. I think it was a little bit overreaction and I don't think, you never want Deebo to throw a baby punch or anything on anybody on our own team, but Deebo also wasn't saying anything bad to Jake, like it sounded. He was meeting him on the field telling him to lock in, the same thing I'll tell to an offensive player who just dropped some balls or made some penalties or something. You never sit there and belittle anybody or try to embarrass anyone. You try to challenge guys that you believe in and a way of, that's how we speak to each other and telling someone they need to focus and lock in because we know you can do this. And I like Taybor Pepper's intentions on it, he’s got his kicker’s back. But I think he kind of interpreted wrong what Deebo was doing to him and overreacted a little bit. And Deebo didn't like that and got him out of his face, and that's really about where it ended.”

Q: Do you have in-house fines for that kind of thing or does this not rise to that level?

SHANAHAN: “No, I fine people for breaking rules. This is just people being football players and dealing with stuff on the sidelines and I didn't really chalk that up to a big deal at all.”

MY TAKE: Putting your hands on a teammate's throat should be against the rules and you can bet that Shanahan would have fined Pepper if he had done to Samuel what Samuel did to him. Shanahan took the path of least resistance by siding with his highly-paid wide receiver over his long snapper. I can't say I'm surprised.

Download and follow The Best 49ers Podcast.