Deebo Samuel took a victory lap Sunday night, and not only because the rival Eagles fell short on the NFL’s biggest stage.
Samuel was among the 49ers players who didn’t take their loss to the Eagles in the NFC Championship Game quietly. In the lead-up to Super Bowl LVII, San Francisco’s do-it-all wide receiver claimed Philadelphia was weak in the secondary and stressed veteran cornerback James Bradberry was “trash.”
The take was probably a bit extreme. But don’t tell that to Samuel, who clearly took joy in Bradberry’s backbreaking mistake at State Farm Stadium. The 2022 All-Pro second-teamer’s holding penalty late in the fourth quarter allowed the Chiefs to wipe out almost all of the remaining time in the game before kicking the game-winning field goal from very close range.
The Athletic’s David Lombardi pointed out Bradberry’s costly mishap was made mere days after Samuel called him out. The four-year veteran himself wasn’t surprised to see what took place.
“Believe me now,” Samuel tweeted, coupled with a few crying-laughing emojis.
Bradberry does deserve credit for how he handled himself after the Eagles’ heartbreaking loss. The veteran corner acknowledged he tugged on JuJu Smith-Schuster’s jersey and was hoping the referees wouldn’t blow their whistles at such a critical juncture of the game.
Time will tell what the future holds for Bradberry, who will hit NFL free agency next month. But if he winds up going against Samuel in the 2023 season, it figures to be a fiery matchup.
