New Delhi, July 31 -- SANTA CLARA - The call came faster than Ricky Pearsall could schedule an MRI.

San Francisco signed Deebo Samuel to a one-year contract worth up to $7 million Thursday, according to NFL Network, a decision that explained itself before the ink dried. Pearsall's left knee had swelled during the first day of training camp, and within hours the franchise was on the phone with a receiver it had watched walk into free agency just months earlier.

Samuel spent last season with the Washington Commanders, where he caught 72 passes for 727 yards and five touchdowns. The 49ers did not call him because the numbers were exceptional. They called him because the situation left them with limited options, and Samuel is fluent in a sy...