The eyes of San Francisco 49ers fans and fantasy football managers have been on the status of Deebo Samuel this week after he suffered a shoulder injury last week. Let’s take a look at whether Samuel will be playing in Week 7 and the fantasy impact of his status this week.
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Is Deebo Samuel Going To Play Week 7?
Unfortunately, we already know that Samuel will not be playing in Week 7 after being ruled out on Saturday. There was hope that Samuel might be able to play in Monday Night Football, but those hopes were snuffed out with a major injury update on Saturday.
Samuel was ruled out on the 49ers’ final injury report due to his shoulder issue. The primary reason for that was a new medical update from head coach Kyle Shanahan that Samuel had suffered a hairline fracture the previous week.
“Deebo [Samuel] will be out. Deebo has changed, took x-rays and MRIs earlier in the week, didn’t have anything. Pain was still there, so we got a CT the other day and found a hairline fracture. So he’ll be out this game, next game and we’ll see after the bye week.”
That explains the somewhat delayed diagnosis of the injury if it took a CT scan to identify the fracture. The end of Shanahan’s statement is the intriguing part because initial reports were that Samuel would miss two games. However, while Shanahan ruled Samuel out for two games, he didn’t commit to a return date.
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That could mean that we see Samuel missing more than just these two games. San Francisco will be hoping that with a bye in Week 9, three weeks will be sufficient time to ensure that Samuel can return. The bye also complicates things a little when it comes to a potential IR move for Samuel.
If the 49ers placed Samuel on injured reserve, he would be absent until Week 13 at least. An IR stint must last for a minimum of four games, meaning that with the bye, Samuel would be absent for five weeks in total.
Potential Fantasy Options if Samuel Is Out Include Ronnie Bell, Ray-Ray McCloud, and Jauan Jennings
Samuel’s absence this week opens up an opportunity for one of the other three WRs on San Francisco’s roster. Through the first six weeks, Samuel has been targeted 32 times, at an average of just over five targets per game.
Based on the current numbers, Jauan Jennings appears to be the third WR for the 49ers this season. He has 12 targets through the first six games. When Brandon Aiyuk missed Week 3, Jennings was the second-most targeted WR, with three to two for Ronnie Bell. Jennings also finished with the most targets of the trio last week when Samuel left the game.
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The complicated element is that Samuel’s role is not easily replicated. He also plays a role in the run game, and it was Ray-Ray McCloud who had two carries last week. Those are their only two carries by a wide receiver not named Samuel this year. That could suggest that McCloud is who San Francisco views as the more direct replacement for Samuel.
Bell is more under the radar but has impressed in limited opportunities this year. He has three receptions for 31 yards and a touchdown on four targets. It’s not reasonable to throw him in your lineup if you were counting on Samuel, but he might be a name to stash in deeper leagues.
The other element of Samuel’s game is those carries, with 18 through the first six weeks. Therefore, his absence could open up more of a role for either Elijah Mitchell or Jordan Moore.
However, we have no idea what the 49ers backfield will look like this week, so deciding who to start out of those two is essentially a coin flip right now.