49ers' Shanahan: 'Special' Samuel will continue dual role

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday that Deebo Samuel will continue to take on a do-it-all role for the team after questions over the wideout's future were quashed with a contract extension.

"I think (it's) based off of whatever happens," Shanahan said, according to Nick Wagoner of ESPN. "From my standpoint schematically, from our team's personnel, from Deebo's, from what we think gives us the best chance to win, if we wanted to move Deebo to running back that would have been something that we were honest about."

"You can't do that with (just) anybody," Shanahan added. "You've got to do that with a special player and Deebo is a special player. That's why he's earned this contract that he's got and I think that's why he's going to continue to earn it going forward."

Samuel requested a trade from San Francisco this offseason, and his desire to leave was reportedly partly due to his reluctance to play running back moving forward.

But it appears the 49ers and Samuel were able to come to a financial compromise. The 26-year-old's three-year extension, which is reportedly worth up to $73.5 million, contains $1.95 million in incentives based on rushing production.

Samuel enjoyed a breakout 2021 season, earning first-team All-Pro honors. He racked up 77 catches for 1,405 yards and six touchdowns, adding 365 yards and eight scores on the ground.

Shanahan knows he has a unique threat and Samuel's dual-threat role will continue to be vital to San Francisco's success.

"When Deebo stays healthy and he's able to practice and able to go through things, Deebo is capable of doing anything," Shanahan said. "That's why he's helped us so much to win, whether it's in the pass game or the run game or whether it's blocking or throwing the one time we asked him to throw. When you have guys who have skill sets that can do a number of things, you want to always keep them doing them."