How 49ers trading Deebo benefits team’s murky financial future

The decision to trade wide receiver Deebo Samuel has the immediate drawback that the 49ers are parting ways with one of the league's most unique players.But the 49ers expect a couple of benefits that could play out over the next four years.Samuel had one year remaining on his contract. He was scheduled to make $17.55 million this season. Now, the Washington Commanders will pick up the terms of his contract.The 49ers do not owe Samuel another penny. However, he still will count $31 million on the team's salary cap in 2025. That figure comes from money already paid to Samuel that had yet to count against the cap because of the structure of the contract.Next year, Samuel's contract will be completely wiped off the 49ers' books.San Francisco was the NFL's top-spending team in 2024. They spent $334.5 million in player compensation, according to Spotrac.com, while the salary cap was set at $255.5 million per team.In essence, the 49ers have been doing a lot of credit-card spending. At some point, that money must count against the salary cap."(There are) some tighter constraints than we've had in the past," Lynch said last week at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis."You just got to...