Deebo Samuel

San Francisco 49ers star wide receiver Deebo Samuel was ruled out for Monday night's game against the Minnesota Vikings because of a shoulder injury.

According to Matt Maiocco of KNBR-680, Samuel has a hairline fracture in his shoulder and will miss at least the next two games.

Samuel was forced to exit San Francisco's Week 6 game against the Cleveland Browns in the first quarter because of the shoulder ailment.

Samuel was initially deemed questionable to return before being ruled out after halftime. Star running back Christian McCaffrey was also ruled out in the third quarter with an oblique injury. Without two of their best offensive players, the 49ers went on to suffer their first loss of the season 19-17 when rookie kicker Jake Moody missed a field goal near the end of the fourth quarter.

Through six games, Samuel has reached the end zone just twice with one rushing touchdown and one receiving touchdown. He has 20 catches for 302 yards while also adding 95 rushing yards on 18 carries.

Along with McCaffrey, Samuel is arguably the most dangerous player on San Francisco's offense.

With Samuel out in Week 7, Brandon Aiyuk will be the unquestioned No. 1 wideout for the 49ers, and quarterback Brock Purdy's co-top target along with tight end George Kittle.

In terms of wide receivers, Jauan Jennings, Ray-Ray McCloud and rookie seventh-round pick Ronnie Bell are likely to see significantly increased roles while Samuel is out as well.

Deebo Samuel does not appear to be sweating his feud with C.J. Gardner-Johnson.

The San Francisco 49ers wide receiver laughed off Gardner-Johnson's comments during an appearance on Up & Adams on Wednesday.

"I have no idea where that came from. He was probably just thinking about me or something. ... He just sound like he's mad I got a little bag and a lot of money, and no one knows who he is," Samuel said.

Gardner-Johnson ripped into Samuel on Instagram Live this week, calling him a "running back" who "can't run routes."

"Don't be friendly when you see me because you be so flashy," Gardner-Johnson said. "You better hope all that talk you be doing when we see you all, whatever [playoff] round it may be, because I can guard you. You can't run routes. You're a running back. ... I ain't gonna sit here and play with you, little boy. Just because you got a little bag, people give you a little clout, and then you ain't nothing, bro. Stop playing."

The Lions and 49ers do not play during the 2023 regular season, so Samuel being on Gardner-Johnson's mind was a little surprising. That said, Detroit and San Francisco are in a three-way tie with the Philadelphia Eagles for the top seed in the NFC at 5-1, so it's possible—if not likely—the two will run into each other at some point.

Gardner-Johnson was part of the Eagles secondary that shut Samuel and the 49ers passing game down during the 2023 NFC Championship Game. He left Philadelphia for Detroit this offseason, recording 13 tackles in two weeks before going on injured reserve with a pectoral injury.

Samuel is currently dealing with a shoulder injury suffered in Sunday's loss to the Cleveland Browns.

C.J. Gardner-Johnson called out Deebo Samuel.

Again.

The Detroit Lions safety posted a video on social media saying the San Francisco 49ers wide receiver "can't run routes" and is a "running back."

The video comes after Gardner-Johnson commented on the 49ers' scuffle with the Cleveland Browns ahead of Sunday's game, which prompted the wide receiver to share quite the highlight of the defensive back:

It isn't a stretch to suggest there could be some bad blood between the two stemming from last season's NFC Championship Game.

Gardner-Johnson was a member of the Philadelphia Eagles team that eliminated Samuel's 49ers, although an injury to quarterback Brock Purdy helped swing that game in the victors' direction. Jordan Elliott of NBC Sports Bay Area noted Samuel called Philadelphia his "most hated" team in the league this offseason.

Yet Gardner-Johnson is no longer a member of the reigning NFC champions after signing with the Lions this offseason.

He is also sidelined with a pectoral injury he suffered in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks, while Samuel suffered a shoulder injury during Sunday's loss to the Browns.

This individual rivalry may have to stay online for the rest of this season, as the 49ers and Lions are not scheduled to face each other.

Yet it could be a backstory in a potential playoff game, as Detroit leads the NFC North with a 5-1 record. San Francisco is seemingly an annual contender and leads the NFC West with the same 5-1 record.

Samuel might just get the opportunity to prove Gardner-Johnson wrong on a high-profile stage if the two sides meet up in the postseason.

The oblique injury for San Francisco 49ers star Christian McCaffrey "is more of a pain-tolerance thing," according to NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco, and the team reportedly received more good news on its other stars on Tuesday ahead of Week 7.

Maiocco noted "it's not out of the question" the 49ers will have Deebo Samuel (shoulder), Trent Williams (ankle) and McCaffrey all available for the team's game on Monday night against the Minnesota Vikings.

ESPN's Adam Schefter confirmed none of the Niners' stars are dealing with "long-term" injuries.

McCaffrey, a two-time Pro Bowler, was limited to 36 offensive snaps in San Francisco's 19-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns. He had 52 yards from scrimmage and one touchdown before exiting.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters after the game the team was unsure of when the injury occurred.

"He mentioned about four possible plays he thought he could have done it on," Shanahan said. "But we're not sure which one he did."

McCaffrey has been electric in his first full season in the Bay Area. He's the NFL's leading rusher (553 yards) with 23 receptions for 177 yards, and he has found the end zone nine total times.

The odds of the 27-year-old actually winning the award are slim based on recent history, but he has at least put himself into the MVP conversation.

Samuel has battled through injuries this year, which contributed to him failing to register a catch in two of San Francisco's last three games. His 50.3 receiving yards per game are on pace to be the second-lowest of his career.

Fortunately for the Niners, Brandon Aiyuk has emerged as a strong No. 1 target for Brock Purdy. As a result, Samuel's injuries haven't affected the passing game like they would've in recent years.

There's no such protection for Williams, who continues to be an elite blocker at 35. Pro Football Focus' Gordon McGuinness named him as the NFL's best left tackle through the first quarter of the season.

The 49ers have their bye in Week 9. Even if McCaffrey, Samuel and Williams don't miss any time before then, the team is probably looking forward to them having a little extra time to recuperate before the playoff push gets fully underway.

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel and Detroit Lions safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson traded jabs on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The online feud began when the clip of a fight breaking out during the 49ers' loss to the Cleveland Browns went viral on Sunday, as the Pro Bowl wideout was involved. Gardner-Johnson commented on the scuffle, taking shots at Samuel.

The 27-year-old pass-catcher later responded with a clip of Gardner-Johnson being struck by former Chicago Bears receiver Javon Wims in 2020, which led to a back-and-forth between the two on X.

While they haven't had any prior confrontations on the field, it's worth noting that the 25-year-old safety was a member of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2022. The Eagles eliminated Samuel's 49ers in last season's NFC Championship game by the final score of 31-7.

San Francisco starting quarterback Brock Purdy and backup Josh Johnson were both injured early in the contest, leading to a hobbled Purdy simply handing the ball off for most of the afternoon. This led to the Eagles' defense easily stopping the suddenly one-dimensional 49ers offense.

Samuel was bothered by the loss, revealing in May that the Eagles were his "most hated team" at the moment (per Kevin Patra of NFL.com).

"All the trash talk coming from the Eagles fan base and the players, you just get tired of that," he said.

Following a difficult defeat at the hands of the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan gave injury updates on both Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel on Monday.

McCaffrey is getting an MRI on his oblique and ribs while Samuel will be day-to-day with a shoulder injury ahead of next week's matchup against the Minnesota Vikings.

Both star offensive weapons had to exit Sunday's game early, contributing to San Francisco's struggles on that side of the ball.

While McCaffrey was ruled out of the game in the fourth quarter, the 49ers had to go without Samuel for the majority of the afternoon after he went down with an injury in the first period and never returned.

The All-Pro wideout left the game with just two carries for 11 yards. As for McCaffrey, he finished with 11 carries for 43 yards and three catches for nine yards and a touchdown.

And playing against an elite Cleveland defense without its two top playmakers didn't make life any easier for Brock Purdy and the rest of a typically dominant San Francisco offense.

The 49ers had just 215 yards of total offense, their lowest mark of the year by a pretty wide margin. Purdy, who impressed against the Dallas Cowboys the previous week, threw for 125 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

In the end, San Francisco still had an opportunity to win the game until rookie Jake Moody missed the game-winning field goal with six seconds remaining.

While Samuel hasn't quite been up to his typical standard this year, McCaffrey has been otherworldly once again. He has 553 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground while recording 177 yards and two more scores in the passing game.

And although Shanahan has had a tendency to still produce with lesser-known backs in the past, losing a superstar like McCaffrey won't be an easy fix.

Some good news for 49ers' fans is that star left tackle Trent Williams was deemed not to have suffered a high-ankle sprain after having to gut out Sunday's game.

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel exited and was ruled out for the remainder of Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns due to a shoulder injury.

According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, X-rays on Samuel's injury were negative and the wide receiver will undergo an MRI. NFL Insider Jordan Schultz confirmed the report, noting the injury is "not considered to be serious."

Samuel, 27, has snagged 20 passes for 302 yards and one touchdown and rushed for 84 yards and one score on 16 carries in 2023.

Last year was an injury-shortened season for Samuel, who missed four-plus contests.

The former South Carolina star sat for a late October game against the Los Angeles Rams with a hamstring injury. He then missed three-plus games with an MCL sprain and an ankle sprain after being tackled during a run amid the team's 35-7 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Dec. 11. Samuel was carted off the field after the injury, which looked as if it could be a season-ender.

Thankfully, it was not, and he returned for the 49ers' final regular season game against the Arizona Cardinals.

Samuel was the team's unquestioned star in 2021 after he amassed 1,770 yards from scrimmage and 14 touchdowns while helping lead the team to the NFC Championship Game.

With running back Christian McCaffrey now fully integrated into the offense, the 49ers arguably sport the best skill-position talent in football thanks to him, Samuel, tight end George Kittle and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.

Brock Purdy has shown his 2022 breakout was no mirage as well. Through five starts, he had thrown for 1,271 yards and nine touchdowns to zero interceptions.

Losing Samuel is obviously a blow for San Francisco, but McCaffrey and Aiyuk should ensure the offense doesn't fall off too far in his absence.