Two San Francisco 49ers players, safety Talanoa Hufanga and linebacker Dre Greenlaw, made the NFL Network's annual "Top 100 Players of 2023" on Wednesday, and just a day later, wide receiver Deebo Samuel was unveiled at No. 61 on the list along with the rest of the athletes ranked 61-70. The fifth-year pro is a dual-threat receiver and has been widely recognized for his yards-after-catch abilities. According to Pro Football Focus, Samuel's 9.6 YAC per reception average tops all NFL wideouts.
The "Top 100 Players of 2023" is a video series produced by NFL Films highlighting this elite set of players and is now streaming on NFL+. Players 11-100 are being unveiled on the platform in groups of 10 every weekday through August 3. The video series concludes with a two-hour live show, "The Top 100 Players of 2023: The Top 10," on Monday, August 7 at 5:00 p.m. PT. and will be hosted by Rich Eisen and Andrew Whitworth.
The "NFL Top 100" began ahead of the 2011 season, and the list is determined by current NFL players voting on their peers for their body of work from the previous NFL season.
Last season, Samuel had 56 catches for 632 yards and two scores through the air and logged another 42 carries for 232 yards and three rushing touchdowns in his 13 regular season starts. His efforts helped San Francisco finish out the year as a top ten scoring offense (26.5 PPG).
