The San Francisco 49ers are keeping Deebo Samuel off injured reserve for now, with their upcoming bye giving the team a reason to wait before committing to a longer absence.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan explained Thursday that the Week 8 break is influencing San Francisco’s approach to Samuel’s hamstring injury. The 49ers are holding off on an IR move rather than ruling it out altogether.
The decision preserves options for Samuel’s return. It does not mean he has been cleared to play, and Shanahan’s explanation should not be read as a promise that the receiver will be available immediately after the bye.
Samuel was hurt during Sunday’s win over the Seattle Seahawks.
With San Francisco preparing to host the Washington Commanders on Monday night, the question has shifted from whether the injury will cost him time to how the team can manage that absence without unnecessarily extending it.
Shanahan tied that calculation directly to the schedule.
“But gaining that week where we don’t play is still why we’re trying to wait on that right now,” Shanahan said.
Why the 49ers’ bye matters for Deebo Samuel
An injured reserve designation carries a minimum absence of four games. The NFL established that requirement in 2022, and it remains part of the current roster rules.
A bye does not count as one of those games. That distinction has a practical effect on Samuel’s situation.
San Francisco’s schedule has Washington in Week 6 and a trip to Atlanta in Week 7, followed by the Week 8 bye. The 49ers then host the Las Vegas Raiders on Nov. 8 and visit the Dallas Cowboys on Nov. 15.
If Samuel went on IR before the Washington game, those four matchups would make up the required absence.
The earliest subsequent game would be the Week 11 meeting with the Minnesota Vikings on Nov. 22. That is a calendar calculation based on the rule, not a projection of how long his hamstring will need to heal.
Keeping him on the active roster leaves San Francisco able to reassess his readiness without that four-game restriction. The tradeoff is that the club continues to devote a roster spot to a player who is recovering, instead of opening it for another player.
The bye therefore offers something useful even if Samuel cannot help against Washington or Atlanta: additional recovery time without another game being missed. Whether that makes a difference to his eventual availability will depend on his progress.
Christian Kirk takes a step toward returning
San Francisco also announced Thursday that it had opened Christian Kirk’s practice window. That gives the 49ers another receiver to evaluate as they work through Samuel’s absence, although the announcement was not an activation to the game-day lineup.
Kirk’s situation and Samuel’s should be treated separately. One player is beginning the process of returning from IR, while the other remains on the active roster as the team considers whether an IR designation is necessary.
There are additional concerns around Mike Evans. Evans was not scheduled to practice Thursday because of rib and Achilles issues, with Shanahan describing Achilles soreness.
Thursday’s absence alone does not establish his status for Monday’s game, but it adds another question to the receiver preparations.
Shanahan left a possibility for Demarcus Robinson to return before the bye, while identifying after the break as the more likely timing.
San Francisco consequently has several potential reinforcements to monitor, without a confirmed date when the receiver group will be whole.
Shanahan has already outlined the depth options
In his Monday press conference, Shanahan said Samuel’s injury would leave four receivers available from the active-roster group and pointed to the practice squad as a source of help. He explained that the team generally wants five receivers available on game day.
“I think we have enough,” Shanahan said. “We’ve got three guys on practice squad also who can help. Anytime you lose this number of guys, four guys or five guys whatever it is, it’s a huge challenge. But, we do have guys in this building who can do it and we’ll always look.”
That assessment came before Thursday’s Kirk announcement. Asked about Brandin Cooks stepping in after Samuel’s exit, Shanahan described the need to select another receiver from the practice squad during the week.
He also noted that Jacob Cowing had an ankle issue during the Seattle game but was ultimately all right.
Those remarks explain the immediate roster task: identifying enough available receivers for Washington while the injured players work toward returning.
Kirk’s practice participation gives the coaches another development to assess, but it does not by itself settle that game-day decision.
Samuel’s latest setback also comes during a reunion that began with another injury-related roster move. The 49ers announced his one-year deal on Aug. 1 alongside Ricky Pearsall’s placement on injured reserve.
Samuel had spent the 2025 season with Washington, recording 72 catches for 727 yards and five receiving touchdowns. He also had 17 carries for 75 yards and a touchdown.
That production illustrates the receiving and rushing experience San Francisco brought back into its offense.
His time with the Commanders gives Monday’s matchup a personal connection, but the roster decision reaches beyond a meeting with his former team.
San Francisco must weigh the value of an immediately available replacement against the possibility of getting Samuel back before an IR stint would permit.
For now, the next significant development will be whether Samuel progresses enough for the 49ers to continue carrying him on the active roster.
Thursday’s explanation provides a reason for patience, while leaving both an eventual IR move and his return date unresolved.
