It was only a matter of time before the first major injury of the 2020 offseason took place (from a title contender). Deebo Samuel and the San Francisco 49ers ended up with the bad luck on this one, as the standout wide receiver broke his foot during a workout this week.
A report on Thursday from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel broke his foot during a workout and will have surgery to repair the injury. Samuel suffered a Jones fracture and will be out for 12 to 16 weeks as he recovers. Surgery was performed on the foot on Thursday, and Samuel has already confirmed that it was successful and that he plans to be back in 10 weeks. The Niners have confirmed the injury but have been hesitant on a timetable until training camp ensues.
A 10-week timeline would mean that Samuel expects to return the week of August 27th, while a medical timeline pushes a return into week 2 or 3 of the regular season. It would be safe to assume that barring Samuel’s importance to a playoff contender’s offense, his health and safety will be watched and monitored in a conservative manner.
Samuel, the No. 36 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, was an absolute sensation as a rookie for the NFC Champion Niners. He caught a total of 57 passes for 802 yards and three receiving touchdowns while also showing an impressive 159 yards and three more scores on the ground.
The biggest buried lead is the fact that Samuel was slated to be San Fran’s No. 1 receiver heading into the 2020 season with Emmanuel Sanders departing to New Orleans in free agency. Besides George Kittle, we should expect to hear the names of first-round pick Brandon Aiyuk, Kendrick Bourne, and Jalen Hurd as receivers that can pick up the slack during Deebo’s absence.
