SANTA CLARA, Calif. — “Do you want to be the team’s kick ret…”
The question wasn’t fully formed Friday when Deebo Samuel answered it.
“Oh, for sure,” the San Francisco 49ers wide receiver said.
Samuel thrives in the open field, and the 49ers have used him as a kick returner in high-stakes situations in previous seasons. This year, he’s gunning for it to be a regular role because he sees the potential for some big plays.
“I feel like it’s going to be a lot of touchdowns coming from not just us but from other teams as well,” he said. “I’m pretty sure other (teams have) a lot of skill guys who are really good in space, as well.”
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In an effort to pump some life into what had become a humdrum part of the game, the NFL dramatically changed kickoff rules in the offseason. Now the kicking and return teams line up just a few yards apart from one another, and fair catches aren’t allowed.
To address the lowest kickoff return rate in @NFL history during the 2023 season and concern for player health and safety, the NFL Competition Committee has proposed a new kickoff rule.
If adopted by NFL clubs, the new rule will keep the excitement of kickoff returns in the… pic.twitter.com/0ltQpSrAvC
— NFL Football Operations (@NFLFootballOps) March 22, 2024
Some observers think kickoff returns will end up looking similar to the outside zone runs the 49ers and other teams deploy on offense. That is, if the ball carrier can get his pursuers headed in one direction, there might be opportunities to make cuts and take advantage of running lanes.
That’s an area in which Samuel excels. He’s averaged 6.3 yards per carry over the past three seasons and has scored 16 rushing touchdowns in that span.
“I feel like we have a real big advantage to make one guy miss,” he said Friday. “If it’s just you and the kicker, nine times out of 10, the kicker’s not making the tackle.”
Judging from Friday’s practice, Samuel will have plenty of competition for the job. Just about every healthy running back and receiver on the roster took a turn returning kicks during the session. Four other potential candidates — running backs Christian McCaffrey and rookie Isaac Guerendo as well as rookie receivers Ricky Pearsall and Jacob Cowing — didn’t practice but could be part of the mix at the position. McCaffrey had a scheduled day off; the rookies were out with injuries.
Odds & ends
• McCaffrey was one of several prominent veterans missing from practice. DE Nick Bosa, TE George Kittle, OL Jake Brendel, OL Jon Feliciano, CB Charvarius Ward and DT Maliek Collins also had scheduled days off. Another potential starter, OG Spencer Burford, was out with an undisclosed injury.
Brendel, Burford and Feliciano’s absences, combined with Trent Williams’ contract holdout, made the team especially thin along the offensive line. Nick Zakelj served as the first- and second-string center, while rookie Dominick Puni played right guard.
The defense took advantage. Defensive end Leonard Floyd regularly crashed into the offensive backfield, and quarterback Brock Purdy endured his roughest outing of the week in finishing 4-of-8 in 11-on-11 drills.
Awesome: San Francisco Fire Department Station #13 made it training camp to meet the 49ers’ #13, Brock Purdy.
SFFD will now have a signed Purdy jersey for the firehouse. And there’s even more to this story… pic.twitter.com/KKTgu66N7m
— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) July 26, 2024
His first pass, a deep ball to Samuel, sailed over the receiver’s head and was run down by safety Ji’Ayir Brown for a leaping interception. Purdy also overthrew receiver Ronnie Bell on a deep ball over the middle. The only other takeaway of the session came when linebacker Fred Warner ripped the ball from running back Elijah Mitchell following a short reception. Cornerback Isaac Yiadom, who was filling in for Ward, scooped up the loose ball and ran the other way for a score.
Backup quarterback Brandon Allen was 5-of-6 on short throws to running backs and tight ends. His competition for the No. 2 role, Josh Dobbs, finished 4-of-6. His final pass of the day was knocked down at the line of scrimmage by defensive tackle Shakel Brown.
• Burford’s and Feliciano’s injuries allowed Puni, the 49ers’ third-round pick in April, to line up with the first-string unit for the first time this summer. Offensive line coach Chris Foerster said those three would compete for the starting right guard spot this year.
“He plays with great anchor. He’s extremely intelligent. He’s really a good player,” Foerster said of Puni. “He’s a special guy, and he’s just not (played) the position for very long. And with our system, it’s a little bit of a change for him. So there’s going to be a learning curve, but he’s got some real stuff to him.”
• When the pads go on for the first time Monday, the main event will be the one-on-one pass-rush drills between offensive and defensive linemen. But Foerster would prefer it be a non-event.
“I get really mad at one-on-ones,” he said, noting that the only people who care about who wins those matchups are in the front office and the media. He said that when he was in Miami, reporters obsessed over the drill.
“All of a sudden there would be a tally in the next day’s paper on who won and who lost the one-on-ones,” Foerster said. “And the (offensive line) guys were furious.”
The offensive linemen are at a disadvantage in the drills because there’s no threat of a run and because the defensive linemen have more room to operate than they would in a game-day situation. Foerster added that he usually wants his players to concentrate on improving a specific aspect of their pass protection, not on winning the repetition.
“I don’t care if you get beat every day for three weeks, you’re working on something, right?” he said. “Certain guys have weaknesses, and they’re going to go work on that weakness, and they may just get pounded for a while because they can’t get it. And then they say, ‘Well, I have to survive the drill now.’ Don’t survive the drill. Get better.”
• With Williams holding out of camp, Jaylon Moore has been taking the bulk of the snaps at left tackle with veteran Chris Hubbard backing him up.
Why did the 49ers tap Hubbard, 33, in free agency? For one, he played last season for the Tennessee Titans, who have at least some stylistic similarities to the 49ers. More than that, Hubbard received an endorsement from former 49ers offensive lineman Daniel Brunskill, who also was in Tennessee last season.
“Dan Brunskill is a Kyle Shanahan favorite,” Foerster said with a smile. “Brunskill gave him the check and said, ‘This guy can do it for you guys,’ Kyle was like, ‘Yeah, well, Brunskill says we can do it. I don’t care what you say, this guy’s playing for us.’ Danny said the guy was actually really good at it, and he felt it would be a good transition.”
• What is former Chargers head coach Brandon Staley’s role in practices? Officially, Staley has the nebulous title of assistant head coach/defense. Practically, he works with the defensive backs, especially the cornerbacks.
On Friday, he did some one-on-one work with Deommodore Lenoir while defensive backs coach Daniel Bullocks did the same with Ji’Ayir Brown.
Linebacker Dre Greenlaw wasn’t the only 49er who suffered an Achilles tear in the Super Bowl. So did Bullocks — while hopping up and down celebrating an interception — and he’s been conducting practice with a walking boot on his left leg.
Brandon Staley working with Deommodore Lenoir early on in practice. While that was going on, secondary coach Daniel Bullocks was doing one-on-one work with Ji’Ayir Brown. pic.twitter.com/7zaMYWI7YE
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) July 26, 2024
• Kicker Jake Moody, who went 8-for-8 on field goals on the first two days of training camp, missed his first of the summer — from roughly 46 yards out. The temperature was cooler on Friday than it had been the previous two days, and Moody was dealing with a breeze he hadn’t had on Wednesday and Thursday. He made kicks from 38, 43 and 51 yards and is now 11-of-12 in camp.
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(Photo of Deebo Samuel: D. Ross Cameron / USA Today)
