The San Francisco 49ers could find themselves without second-year star wideout Deebo Samuel to start the regular season. Samuel is four weeks removed from surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his left foot, and he expects to be ready by Week 1, possibly earlier. Some question whether or not that means he will be at 100 percent, though, when that time comes.
Samuel had a breakout rookie campaign, hauling in 57 passes for 802 yards with three receiving and three rushing touchdowns. He is expected to be a featured component in the 49ers offense.
Four hundred and eighty-four of his receiving yards came after the catch, according to Pro Football Focus. That as good enough to rank fifth in the league in that category.
Samuel, however, was the only receiver in the top-7 who had fewer than 1,000 receiving yards. His average yards after the catch per reception (8.5) actually ranks No. 2 in the league among receivers with 30-or-more receptions. Only A.J. Brown's 8.9 yards-after-the-catch average was higher.
Targeting Samuel resulted in a passer rating of 120.2. Only Kendrick Bourne contributed to a higher passer rating (121.2) when targeted.
Below are the yards after the catch by 49ers receivers who hauled in 10-or-more passes in 2019, ranked by average.
| Rec | Yards | YAC | YAC/Rec | |
| Deebo Samuel | 57 | 802 | 484 | 8.5 |
| Kendrick Bourne | 30 | 358 | 124 | 4.1 |
| Emmanuel Sanders | 66 | 869 | 240 | 3.6 |
| Marquise Goodwin | 12 | 186 | 38 | 3.2 |
| Dante Pettis | 11 | 109 | 26 | 2.4 |
Notes: Richie James Jr. averaged a team-leading 17.3 yards after the catch but on only six receptions. Emmanuel Sanders caught 66 passes last season but did so between two teams — the 49ers and Denver Broncos.
* This article was inspired by this tweet from Grant Cohn of SI.
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