GRANNY CLARA — “Don’t worry. They have to come here and tie him up.Before Sunday’s NFC Championship game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Detroit Lions, C.J. of Deebo Samuel. That was the only thing he said when asked about it. Gardner Johnson. Gardner-Johnson “tied up” Samuels during Sunday’s game and committed a 15-yard personal foul. Lions coach Dan Campbell said he doesn’t want to see that.
“Yeah, no plates, no personal fuss. That’s what I’m going to tell you,” Campbell told reporters earlier this week. “That’s great. He knows how to pull the leg without crossing the line.Despite the penalty, the Lions still led 20-7 early in the game, and Gardner-Johnson appeared on Fox to say goodbye to the 49ers and their fans. But Samuel and the 49ers had the last laugh as San Francisco beat Detroit 34-31 to advance to Super Bowl LIII to face the Kansas City Chiefs.
After the game, Samuels was asked about Gardner-Johnson’s personal foul and responded along with other linemen. “That’s right. You must be me. That’s the only way you can catch me, Samuel said.The two were traded in Week 6 after a video of a fight between the 49ers and Cleveland Browns went viral. Several players had physical contact with each other, including Samuels, Brandon Ayuk, Juan Thornhill and Trent Williams.Gardner-Johnson saw the clip on social media and appeared to test Samuel’s toughness, displaying “typical WR behavior.” Samuel responded by sending a video of former 2020 Chicago Bears wide receiver Javon Mims taking several swings at Gardner-Johnson during his time with the New Orleans Saints.
“Son, stop messing around before I turn this around…sit down, son,” Samuel said.Gardner-Johnson, who is known for not backing down from an argument, replied to Samuel: “Trent can’t save you if you see me… FIELD AND STAY!” Keep going”.Gardner-Johnson didn’t stop there. After the Twitter exchange, the Lions safety, who was sidelined with a pectoral injury at the time, took to Instagram Live and continued his verbal abuse of Samuels. “Don’t be nice to me when you see me,” Gardner-Johnson said in an Instagram Live video. “Because I can protect you. The path cannot be executed. You are a running back.
For most of the week, it was unclear if Samuel would play in Sunday’s game. 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan was mum on the details of the injury, simply stating that his star wide receiver was hurt. On Friday, the 49ers announced he would be active for the NFC title game with no limitations.
Samuel finished Sunday’s game with eight receptions for 89 yards.
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