49ers drop major Deebo Samuel update ahead of NFC title game

It’s time for San Francisco 49ers fans to get their popcorn ready.

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan provided a major update on Friday about the status of star receiver Deebo Samuel. Shanahan revealed that Samuel is not on the injury report and will officially play on Sunday during the NFC Championship Game.

“[He was a] full go [in practice] today,” said Shanahan of Samuel, per Omar Ruiz of NFL Network.

The former All-Pro Samuel had to leave last Saturday’s divisional-round win over the Green Bay Packers with a left shoulder injury and did not return. Samuel missed two games with a hairline fracture to the same shoulder during the regular season, and the 49ers had seemingly been unsure throughout the week of his availability for Sunday against Detroit.

But it appears that Samuel has made substantial progress over the last couple of days and will now enter the NFC title game without an injury designation. That is enormous news for the 49ers as Samuel (along with Christian McCaffrey) is perhaps the team’s single most important offensive weapon. Samuel raises the ceiling for that entire offense, so having him out there at home on Sunday will be a tremendous boost for the 49ers’ chances of making the Super Bowl.