Controversial Ex-49ers WR Issues Apology After Bashing New QB

Getty Ex-49ers WR Willie Snead

Well, now this is awkward. Already this year, the social media musings of ex-49ers receiver Willie Snead have attracted considerable attention around the NFL. But now, a different post has gotten him into hot water, one in which he labeled Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa “soft AF” after Miami lost to the Chiefs in the playoffs in January.

That, in itself, is not noteworthy—Snead is likely not the only NFL player who has that opinion of Tagovailoa. But it became noteworthy this week after Snead finally signed a contract to join the Dolphins.

Then it resurfaced: “The Dolphins will be good when Tua stop acting soft AF.”

Snead said he confronted the issue with Tagovailoa.

“Yeah, to be honest, I was watching the game. A fan of the game. I was rooting for the Dolphins that game, I wanted the Dolphins to get past the Chiefs,” Snead told Chris Perkins of the Sun-Sentinel. “I was emotional about it, and I tweeted something about it I probably shouldn’t have, and I regret it today. Me and Tua talked last night, working on a handshake. We already completed one pass in one-on-ones. We put that behind us.”

Willie Snead Questioned ‘Entitlement’

Snead, probably wisely, has deleted his Twitter/X account. He raised some eyebrows earlier in the year when he tweeted about his free agency, apparently taking a shot at the 49ers and the team’s culture in the two years he was in San Francisco, both on minimum deals.

“All I want is to go back to a team that isn’t afraid to let guys compete for a roster spot. These last 3 years been nothing short of entitlement… Competition breedz Champions,” Snead wrote.

Snead was certainly in the 49ers mix for a spot on the roster throughout the year, though he spent most of the season on the practice squad. He was elevated to the active roster five times throughout the season, and appeared in four games, making two catches for 14 yards. He was elevated, too, during the playoffs.

In all, Snead put together a nice career, considering he started as an undrafted free agent from Ball State. He lasted in the league for nine seasons, made 281 catches for a total of 3,445 yards and racked up 16 career touchdowns. Financially, he has done well, too, earning a total of more than $17 million in his career, according to Spotrac.

49ers Top Receivers Dominate Stats

It was difficult for any receiver outside of the two 49ers stars—Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel—to make much of an impact last season. Those two combined for 268 of the 49ers’ 674 receptions in 2022 and 2023, or 39.7% of all catches.

The next tier of 49ers pass-catchers was the non-receivers, with tight end George Kittle and running back Christian McCaffrey—both stars in their own rights—totaling 264 catches in two seasons. That’s another 39.1% of the team’s catches.

Third receiver Jauan Jennings had 54 catches in the last two seasons, which is 8% of the team’s receptions. Put it all together and that’s almost 88% of all 49ers catches going to those five players, only three of which are receivers. If Snead wanted a bigger role, it’s hard to see where more catches would be available.

That’s a problem Snead will find with the Dolphins, too, where Tyreke Hill and Jaylen Waddle combined for 191 of Miami’s 393 catches last year—or 49%. Even more entitlement there.