A rib injury to Ray-Ray McCloud prompted the San Francisco 49ers to make some adjustments on special teams. The player stepping into McCloud's spot returning kickoffs is wide receiver Deebo Samuel.
One might question why the 49ers would risk deploying one of their highest-paid offensive weapons for kickoff returns. As it turns out, the team had been considering giving Samuel an opportunity on special teams even before McCloud's injury.
When asked if Samuel would continue returning while McCloud, now on injured reserve, is out, head coach Kyle Shanahan responded, "Most likely. That wasn't just a decision with Ray-Ray being out. That was also a decision we were thinking about going to regardless. Nothing against Ray-Ray or anyone. It was just more ways to get a special player like Deebo the ball in his hands."
Shanahan added, "So we got to take that risk-reward every week. We decided to do it the last two weeks, and we'll come up with that decision each week here going forward."
Special teams aside, Samuel has been very productive in recent weeks, amassing 11 catches for 265 yards, three receiving touchdowns, and two rushing touchdowns in the last two games. His contributions have injected a spark into the 49ers' offense, a fact not lost on reporters.
"We always try to get it to Deebo to get a spark since he's been around," Shanahan said. "But there are other choices, too. If we go to [RB] Christian [McCaffrey] at the time, [TE] George [Kittle], [WR Brandon Aiyuk], [WR] Juan [Jennings], anybody, they all can give sparks. It kind of depends on what teams are playing [and] how they're playing us.
"Deebo's also strung together a number of healthy weeks here over this last month, which has allowed him really to get back into the groove of things, and be more consistent, and just being out there and not having to sub him quite as much, and him kind of being ready for all this stuff.
"So it's awesome when you can put him there. And the more he does it, the more people are going to focus extremely hard to take those away because if he isn't a good look, that's usually the results you get. And the more we can get people to take Deebo away—that's nothing against Deebo—that means he's a threat, and that makes things easier for other guys."