49ers’ Deebo Samuel cleared to play in NFC Championship vs. Lions
Deco Samuel, a wide receiver with the San Francisco 49ers, was taken off the injury list on Friday and is scheduled to play against the Detroit Lions in Sunday’s NFC Championship Game.
Samuel described his shoulder injury as a deep bruise sustained during his team’s Saturday night 24-21 playoff victory over the Green Bay Packers.On Monday, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan declared that Samuel was not broken.
He claimed that in order to relieve pain, he worked for many hours this week with physical therapists in San Francisco. Samuel shook his head when a reporter asked him how he would defend his shoulder on Sunday.
Samuel declared, I ain’t protecting anything.
Before being declared out of the NFC Divisional Round match at the start of the third quarter due to a shoulder injury, Samuel had left the game twice. He suffered a shoulder injury in the middle of the first quarter, and at first, it was thought that his recovery was uncertain. He was declared out for the remainder of the game after it was observed that he was without his shoulder pads and jersey at the beginning of halftime.
He initially departed the game in the first quarter following a forceful blow to the head. He went inside the blue medical tent, went through the concussion procedure, and came out on the sidelines.
Samuel finished the day with 24 yards and two catches. Throughout the season, he gained 892 receiving yards and 225 rushing yards, good for a total of 12 touchdowns.
Following Samuel’s departure from the game on Sunday, seasoned receiver Chris Conley saw more snaps against the Packers. He blocked running back Christian McCaffrey’s 39-yard touchdown run and then caught a 17-yard deep pass from quarterback Brock Purdy to set up the game-winning drive.
When I watched Samuel at the beginning of the previous two practices, it was difficult to tell he was wounded. During the red zone time on Friday, he moved well, gyrated to the music blasting from the speakers, and raised his arms to catch two passes slightly above his head.
Samuel’s shoulder pain tolerance decreased throughout the course of the week, according to Shanahan. Shanahan stated that Samuel was ready to play on Friday and didn’t run the risk of aggravating his shoulder injury. The only concern that appears to remain is how much hitting Samuel’s shoulder will take from the Lions when they make contact.
The extremely physical Naturally, Samuel uses his shoulder more than the typical wide receiver does, along with his knees and thighs, and the 49ers frequently deploy him in tailback-like situations. Defensive players have been itching to test his resolve and take shots at him throughout the years.
For instance, he was forced to leave all three of the 2021 playoff games—in Dallas, Green Bay, and Los Angeles—for a brief period of time after absorbing hard hits or aggravating pre-existing injuries. However, he never really returned, and in those contests, he totaled 191 yards and two touchdowns.
While Shanahan had some concerns earlier in the week over Samuel’s availability for this NFC championship game, he is now fully unfazed about it as San Francisco wraps off their three-practice stretch. Samuel’s condition improved this week at that rate.
Shanahan remarked, We were really concerned after the game because he couldn’t come back in.However, he had a fantastic session yesterday and was totally focused today. Therefore, it’s currently out of sight and out of mind.
The 49ers have probably been able to properly incorporate Samuel into their game plan for this matchup against Detroit because he was only absent from practice on Wednesday.
Despite Samuel’s complete absence from the injury report, San Francisco did add an unexpected player to its roster. Oren Burks, the third linebacker, injured his shoulder in a practice accident, according to Shanahan. He is marked on the injury report as doubtful.
Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles will assume his duties as strongside linebacker if he is unable to play on Sunday. Kalia Davis, a defensive tackle who is still on injured reserve despite practicing, is likewise marked as questionable.
