Shanahan: Deebo most likely suffered high ankle sprain vs. Bucs originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
Every member of the 49ers Faithful held their breath Sunday when star wide receiver Deebo Samuel went down with a left ankle injury during the second quarter of San Francisco's 35-7 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Coach Kyle Shanahan said in his postgame press conference that Samuel did not endure an ankle fracture. His injury most likely is a high ankle sprain, which is good news for the "wide back."
Get Southern California news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC LA newsletters.
If it is a high ankle sprain, Samuel's recovery timeline all depends on the severity of the injury. More details will be available in the coming days as Samuel likely will undergo an MRI.
Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, recovery from a high ankle sprain generally is expected to be 4 to 6 weeks. The NFL playoffs open with the wild-card round on Jan. 14 -- about five weeks from Sunday.
Sports
Get today's sports news out of Los Angeles. Here's the latest on the Dodgers, Lakers, Angels, Kings, Galaxy, LAFC, USC, UCLA and more LA teams.
Samuel gained 64 yards on eight touches, including a 13-yard scamper into the end zone for the game's first points, before exiting with the injury. That was his third rushing touchdown of the season, which earned him a $150,000 bonus in contract incentives.
Losing Samuel to injury would be devastating for the 49ers. With two starting quarterbacks already ruled out for the season in Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo, the 49ers' Super Bowl hopes rely on 22-year-old rookie Brock Purdy's shoulders. Having elite offensive weapons such as Samuel, running back Christian McCaffrey and tight end George Kittle healthy eases the expectations on Purdy, who so far has passed the eye test and threw for 185 yards and two scores on 16-of-21 passing against Tampa Bay.
Shanahan revealed that Purdy endured an oblique injury against the Bucs, but that isn't why he was removed in the fourth quarter with San Francisco owning a comfortable 28-point lead.
RELATED: Where 49ers stand in NFC playoff picture after Week 14
Watching key members of the 49ers' offense going down with serious injury is nothing new for Shanahan. San Francisco lost two starting QBs, Lance and Garoppolo, to season-ending injuries in a span of 77 days.
It's not clear when Samuel could return for the 49ers, but they're hopeful he'll be ready when the playoff bracket begins.
