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Deebo Samuel went down in the first drive of the San Francisco 49ers' Divisional round game against the Packers. It was a worrying sight as he had started brightly and was giving Brock Purdy an option to pick apart the Green Bay defense.
But after he had gained nine yards to change a 2nd-and-15 to 3rd-and-6, he went down and had to be attended by the trainers. It was not immediately clear what had happened. But it was a worrying moment for the 49ers and the fans immediately began chanting his name.
A slow motion replay showed that it was a possible concussion or shoulder injury as he entered the medical tent to get evaluated. As he was tackled by three Packers defenders, Deebo Samuel was inadvertently hit high by Jaire Alexander.
Deebo Samuel injury update
Deebo Samuel was officially questionable to return as the Green Bay Packers came back on the field. He was being evaluated for a head injury initially but later it was revealed to be a shoulder injury.
Update: Deebo Samuel has been ruled out for the rest of the game.
49ers cannot afford any injuries to star players against the Packers
The San Francisco 49ers know what happens when they lose a key player during the playoffs. Last year, in the NFC Championship game, they lost quarterback Brock Purdy and fell apart completely.
This year, during the regular season, they lost five games. One of them was against the Los Angeles Rams in their final game, when they were resting their starters. Another one came against the Baltimore Ravens, when the AFC top seed absolutely dominated them.
But there was stretch during the season where they lost three straight games against the Cleveland Browns, Minnesota Vikings and Cincinnati Bengals. The consensus reason why they were struggling was due to injuries to Deebo Samuel and Trent Williams.
Despite having other weapons on offense like Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle, to name just two, they struggled. It shows how fine-tuned the entire team is and how the absence of key components can hurt them more than other teams who might not have such talented personnel.
And with Deebo Samuel missing, Brock Purdy threw an interception in every single game.
That is why even though San Francisco entered this game as favorites, they need every single player to remain healthy. A lot of focus has been on Christian McCaffrey and his star ability but Samuel is the guy who makes it all tick. He is so underrated that he is often noticed when he is not there and that is why Kyle Shanahan will hope that his wide receiver has not suffered any long-term injury.
