The hits keep coming for the San Francisco 49ers. After recently losing running back Christian McCaffrey to injury, wide receiver Deebo Samuel will now miss a few weeks due to a calf injury sustained late in Week 2 against the Minnesota Vikings, per head coach Kyle Shanahan.
There’s been no mention of exactly when or how the injury occurred.
Samuel has never been a bastion of health, as he’s played 15, seven, 16, 13 and 15 games so far in his career. His rugged running style makes it difficult to leave each game unscathed, but that is what makes him so unique. Kyle Shanahan can line him up in the backfield and feed him carries, utilize him on jet sweeps, wide receiver screens and short slants to maximize his run-after-catch ability.
His absence will be felt.
That said, the 49ers will get a reprieve in Week 3, as they play a Rams defense that just got eviscerated by the Arizona Cardinals. In Week 4, though, the New England Patriots have been playing excellent defense and will likely make things difficult.
So far this season, Samuel has caught 13-of-19 targets for 164 yards. He’s also rushed 10 times for 13 yards and a touchdown.
With Samuel out, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle should see an increase in targets, while Jordan Mason continues to handle things in the rushing game. Jauan Jennings has played around 50% of the snaps through two games, and that number should get up into the 80% range now. Chris Conley would likely slide up to replace Jennings.
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