Deebo Samuel Sr. Week 18 Outlook - Cardinals at 49ers

By Derek Brown (FantasyPros), Sun, Jan 8th 2023, 12:05pm EST

Samuel has begun this week practicing in full, so it looks like he'll be back this week. Samuel only has half of one game with Purdy as the starter, so it's difficult to surmise Purdy's fondness for him. Just approaching the matchup, Samuel (assuming he's a full go) should be a central figure in their offensive attack. Despite the missed time, Samuel still leads the team in YAC while ranking third in YAC per reception among wide receivers (minimum 25 targets). Samuel has a 25.9% target share (17th) and 11 red zone targets this season. Samuel will run about 59% of his routes against Christian Matthew (65% catch rate, 101.0 passer rating) and Jace Whittaker (88% catch rate, 106.7 passer rating). Since Week 15, Arizona has operated in zone coverage on 66-72% of their snaps. Samuel has seen 71.8% of his target share against the coverage, ranking 12th in PFF receiving grade and 18th in yards per route (minimum 12 zone targets).