The San Francisco 49ers won’t have wide receiver Deebo Samuel for a couple weeks because of a calf injury he sustained late in the 49ers’ 23-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
While missing Samuel will make life substantially more difficult for the 49ers’ offense, head coach Kyle Shanahan gave a small reason for optimism that the All-Pro wide receiver won’t miss much more time than expected.
Shanahan on Wednesday in a press conference was asked if there was an Achilles element to Samuel’s calf injury. The head coach responded with a flat, “no.”
While it seems like an extreme jump to ask about the Achilles tendon when a player is only supposed to miss a couple weeks with a calf strain, it’s fair given how things went with running back Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey was originally ruled out for the preseason with a calf strain. That has since grown into an Achilles tendinitis issue that pushed the reigning Offensive Player of the Year to IR where he’ll miss at least four more games after missing the season opener.
However, it’s terrific news for the 49ers that Samuel isn’t dealing with something similar. He was a workhorse in the first two games for San Francisco, racking up 23 touches in those contests. That’s the most among wide receivers through the first two weeks.
They may need to ease up on his touches some once he returns, but for now they’re lucky that his calf strain isn’t part of a larger injury that’ll keep him out more than the initial prognosis.