Who Should I Start? Deebo Samuel or Tank Dell

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.

Sunday, May 19, 1:07 PM

Houston Texans wide receiver Tank Dell (leg) has made a speedy recovery from a gunshot wound, and his trainer Delfonte Diamond posted videos of him running routes and performing drills at the University of Houston on Saturday. Dell suffered a flesh wound in a mass Florida shooting, with the bullet piercing the back of his leg and going through the front of his leg, according to sources. The 24-year-old looked explosive on Saturday and appears to be full go as the offseason continues on. Despite Dell looking good, Diamond said he thinks head coach DeMeco Ryans and team officials will hold Dell out for the most part this offseason until training camp at the end of July. After catching 47 passes (75 targets) for 709 yards and seven touchdowns in 11 games (eight starts) in his rookie season in 2023 before suffering a season-ending injury, Dell's fantasy arrow is firmly pointing upward.