San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel had eight catches for 112 yards against the Seattle Seahawks. But the focus coming out of the Monday night loss wasn't the rookie's statistics. It was what was left out on the field by him and his fellow receivers.
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo might have had a big night, and the 49ers could have remained undefeated if not for several drops by his targets, many of which were during crucial parts of the game.
Garoppolo's receivers dropped six passes, and now the 49ers sit at 8-1 rather than 9-0. The quarterback finished the night 24-of-26 for 248 yards with one touchdown, one interception, his lowest completion percentage (52.2), and second-lowest passer rating (66.2) of the season.
Samuel joined KNBR on Thursday night and discussed the rough outing by the 49ers receivers, who were without veteran Emmanuel Sanders for most of the game and Pro Bowl tight end George Kittle.
"I mean, you've got two guys in (assistants) Miles Austin and Wes Welker, who have probably been in our shoes before," Samuel told Mark Willard, "and the thing that they put emphasis on is it's all about the next play.
"You can't dwell on the last game. You need to control the things that you can control. That's going to happen. It's a part of the game, but it shouldn't happen very often.
"We've just got to come back this week and be more poised and focused in on the game plan, and make plays."
Samuel blamed a lack of concentration more than anything else for the dropped passes. The receiver says he may have been thinking about what was going on around him while trying to attack the play, losing focus on the most critical part of his job — the catch.
Garoppolo, unwilling to throw anyone under the bus, took some of the blame when asked on Wednesday about the dropped passes.
"Obviously, I could throw it better to make it easier on those guys," Garoppolo told reporters. "Those guys work their ass off, they really do. They come in every day with a good mindset, and it's just when your number gets called, you've got to take advantage of the opportunities."
Samuel was told about Garoppolo's comments and his willingness to shoulder some of that blame.
"I wouldn't say that," Samuel responded. "I had seen that, as well. If you look at it, it was pretty well-thrown balls, and it's plays we have to make."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Samuel below.
