Getty Deebo Samuel, 49ers
The 49ers won’t be seeing Detroit any time soon this season, though the way things have gone in the NFC, there is a chance that could happen in the playoffs. (Until that is, you remember that Detroit has not won an actual playoff game since the 1991 season). But playoff success is not a prerequisite of trash talk, so there was defensive back C.J. Gardner-Jonhson of the Lions starting a Twitter beef with Deebo Samuel.
The source of the jabber was the skirmish that took place on the field during warmups before the 49ers and Browns squared off in a grinding game won by Cleveland on Sunday. The 49ers apparently told the Browns defensive backs to clear out of a section of the field so they could begin their preparations. Browns players took exception.
In video of the incident, Samuel is seen bouncing and jumping near some Browns players, and shoves one before stepping back and away. That’s when 49ers lineman Trent Williams comes in and, Samuel steps back forward.
On Twitter, Gardner-Johnson commented on the video: “U see Deeboo Run Typical WR behavior … THEN ACT HARD WHEN TRENT SAVE HIM.”
Deebo Samuel Does not Back Down from Lions Twitter Beef
Now, if you are familiar with Deebo Samuel, you know he does not take kindly to trash talk, and would not do so from a safety who plays for the Lions of all teams.
That sparked a response from Samuel, who pulled out an old clip of Gardner-Johnson from three years ago, when he was with the Saints, getting smacked around on the field by Bears tight end Javon Wims.
“Boy, stop playing before you get a rewind of this,” Samuel posted. “Boy sit down.”
And it did not end there.
“Trent can’t save you when you see me,” Gardner-Johnson replied. “On and off the field! Carry on.”
It should be noted that it is entirely possible that Samuel and Gardner-Johnson’s very public Twitter beef is being done tongue-in-cheek, because the pair are veterans whose history goes back a long way. Samuel played at South Carolina, and went up against Gardner-Johnson (from Florida) twice while they were in college. He had 53 yards on four catches in the first meeting, in 2016, then went for 120 yards on four catches in 2018.
Idle Time = Lions-Deebo Samuel Twitter Beef?
It should also be noted that both guys apparently could be looking at some time off. Gardner-Johnson has been out since Week 2 with a torn pectoral muscle, and Samuel injured his shoulder against the Browns on Sunday.
During the altercation, which the Browns dubbed, “disrespectful,” there was pushing, there was shoving, and there were refs trying to keep the peace, but mostly there was big left tackle Williams stepping in once things got a bit physical. In the locker room, once safely out of shouting distance of the 6-foot-5, 318-pound Williams, safety Juan Thornhill issued a warning to Williams (who wound up injuring his ankle during the game).
“I’m going to stand my ground. Fear no man. I say that every time,” Thornhill said from his locker. “I don’t care how big he is, who he is — it doesn’t matter to me. I’m a fighter forever.”
Running back Jerome Ford, whose surprise performance (17 carries, 84 yards) helped fuel Cleveland late in the game, put it a little more colorfully. “You don’t walk into somebody else’s house and just push them around,” he said. ‘It was like coming in and stepping on somebody’s couch, and a lot of dudes didn’t tolerate it.”