Lynch of Deebo Samuel’s availability for Sunday: We won’t put Deebo in harm’s way

Every Friday, 49ers general manager John Lynch or head coach Kyle Shanahan joins KNBR’s The Murph and Mac Show to give us an idea of which injured Niner has a chance to suit up Sunday. Wide receiver Deebo Samuel is this week’s hot topic.

Samuel hasn’t practiced this week due to a hamstring injury. Here’s Lynch on Samuel’s Week 8 availability against the Rams:

“Well, we haven’t had him the first two days, so that’s not great. But I can tell you that Deebo is working tirelessly. He doesn’t like missing games. He doesn’t want to miss this game. And, as I’ve told you, with other top-line players, there are certain guys where if they’re not practicing on Thursday, hey, they’re probably out. That’s not the case with Deebo.”

Even though it’s only Week 8, this game has massive ramifications on the outcome of the NFC West. The 49ers could sweep Los Angeles and give them another loss in the division. On the other hand, the Rams dropping to 3-4 might alter their opinion of their team and prevent them from making groundbreaking moves ahead of the trade deadline.

We know what Deebo brings to the offense and how important he is to this team. The 49ers must weigh the risk and opportunity cost of having Samuel on the field. With a bye week on deck, the 49ers could be thinking long-term with Samuel.

Here’s Lynch on the team being patient with Deebo: “Deebo’s a guy you wait, and that’s what we’ll continue to do, to see that he can get healthy before the game. But we’re not going to put Deebo in harm’s way, either. He’s got to make up some ground, and we’ll see where that ends up at the end of the week.”

Kyle Shanahan is 8-4 head-to-head against Sean McVay. He owns this matchup. That’ll be tested this week with the Rams off the bye and if Samuel cannot play.