Instead of being on opposite sidelines Sunday, as they have been for the past six seasons, Pro Bowl wide receivers Deebo Samuel and DK Metcalf nearly wound up on the same team after the 2019 NFL draft.
The Seattle Seahawks intended to draft both receivers in the second round that year, and thought they had a deal in place to do it, league sources told ESPN on Saturday.
During the first round, the Seahawks traded pick No. 30 to the New York Giants for Nos. 37, 132 and 142 with the idea that -- the next night -- they would move back up from No. 37 to No. 35 to select Samuel.
Shortly before the second round, Seattle had a trade worked out with the Las Vegas Raiders to move up to No. 35, with Samuel as the target.
But before that trade was finalized, the Raiders instead decided to send the 35th pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who selected offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor. To this day, the Seahawks don't know why the Raiders reneged on the deal, according to sources.
One pick later, at No. 36, the San Francisco 49ers drafted Samuel. Once the Seahawks missed out on Samuel, they traded down again, moving from No. 37 to No. 47, with No. 77 also coming their way. At No. 47, Seattle drafted Utah free safety Marquise Blair.
But the Seahawks' grand plan in the second round was to get Samuel near the top and Metcalf later. They did wind up getting Metcalf when they traded up to the last pick in the round, No. 64 overall. Seattle traded third- and fourth-round picks to the New England Patriots for that selection.
So the Seahawks were able to get only one of the two wide receivers they targeted on a draft day that would have changed the NFC West, and the NFL, in a different manner for years.
Each receiver is coming back from an adverse set of circumstances Sunday. One week ago, Samuel began yelling at 49ers kicker Jake Moody after he had missed his third field goal of the day, only to then place his hand on long snapper Taybor Pepper's throat before removing himself from the situation. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said the situation was handled, and Sunday's game against the Seahawks will be Samuel's first since the sideline incident.
Samuel is San Francisco's third-leading receiver this season, with 468 yards on 29 catches.
Metcalf, who has missed Seattle's past two games with a knee injury, returned to practice last week and is expected to play in San Francisco. The two-time Pro Bowler has 35 receptions for 568 yards -- tied for the team lead -- and three touchdowns in seven games this season.