San Francisco wideout Deebo Samuel will miss time after suffering a calf injury Sunday.
Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters Monday that Samuel suffered a calf strain in the team’s 23-17 Week 2 loss to the Minnesota Vikings and will be out a “couple weeks.”
This season, Samuel has recorded a team-leading 13 receptions for 164 yards, along with 10 carries for 13 yards and a rushing touchdown.
The 28-year-old is just the latest Niners star to be sidelined, as he joins running back Christian McCaffrey, who was recently placed on injured reserve to deal with calf and Achilles injuries.
“When you lose real good players, it’s always tough,” Shanahan said. ‘But it happens all over the league and it’s a huge part of this league and a huge part of this game. We’ve got to deal with it.”
Samuel had eight catches for 110 yards on Sunday and has been San Francisco’s No. 1 option in the passing game this season as Brandon Aiyuk works his back into form after missing all of training camp in a contract dispute.
[Related: Jay Glazer on why Aiyuk nixed a trade to the Steelers]
Samuel also has been the team’s No. 2 option at running back with McCaffrey hurt and scored on a touchdown run in the season opener against the New York Jets.
The Niners have an open spot on the roster after placing McCaffrey on injured reserve Saturday, but Shanahan said he was uncertain if he would use that spot to add another receiver or running back.
San Francisco has three healthy running backs on the roster with rookie Isaac Guerendo and Patrick Taylor Jr. backing up Jordan Mason. Guerendo has one carry for no yards this season, while Taylor has only played on special teams.
The Niners have Aiyuk, Jauan Jennings, Chris Conley, Ronnie Bell and rookie Jacob Cowing at receiver.
“I don’t think anything is a true necessity,” Shanahan said. “But having that room gives us a luxury to pick wherever we need it the most and we’ll see how we feel about that here over the next few days.”
Samuel was selected in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft and has spent his entire career in San Francisco.
The 2021 Pro Bowler and first-team All-Pro has 4,286 receiving yards, 1,020 rushing yards and 39 total touchdowns so far in his career.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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