49ers Should Sit Deebo Samuel and Christian McCaffrey Against Arizona
Pivotal NFC playoff seeding is on the line for the 49ers when they face the Cardinals in the regular season finale.
A win against the Cardinals will guarantee the 49ers as the No. 2 seed, while also giving them a chance at the No. 1 seed if the Eagles lose. A loss will see them possibly drop back down to the No. 3 seed if the Vikings win. So the 49ers can go either up, down, or stay where they are.
Defeating Arizona should not take much energy for the 49ers. Arizona is starting their fourth quarterback this year and will be without DeAndre Hopkins. Besides that, they've been mailing the season in for weeks now. The 49ers should be able to beat them convincingly without several key players. Sitting healthy players such as Fred Warner, Nick Bosa, George Kittle, etc. is likely not going to happen for the 49ers.
But the players who SHOULD sit versus Arizona are Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel.
McCaffrey is currently nursing a mild ankle sprain. He was ruled out of Wednesday's practice and rightfully so with rainy conditions. Meanwhile, Samuel is still working his way back from a knee and ankle sprain. Kyle Shanahan gave Samuel a chance to be able to return this week. Given what is at stake for the 49ers in this game, Shanahan could be inclined to play Samuel for those reasons along with getting back into the game shape.
McCaffrey could also easily play this week as his injury isn't severe. The 49ers could play him and Samuel on snap counts, which would be the only way they should be played if they are active. But really, the 49ers do not need these two to beat the Cardinals. Arizona has been "one, two, three, Cancun!" for the past month. They have nothing to play for. This team has checked out. The fact that Hopkins has already been ruled out is indicative of that.
Arizona should not be able to score much if at all this game. This is a game the 49ers can win if they score just 17 points. If this game were against an actual strong opponent, then a case could be made to play these two in limited fashion. But it just isn't worth the risk. The 49ers are already in a great position in the NFC playoff picture. There is playoff seeding on the line, but it isn't enough to risk further injury to McCaffrey and Samuel, especially given the opponent. All that matters for these two, their best offensive weapons, is to get them healthy for the playoffs.
Without them, the 49ers going as far as the Super Bowl diminishes. Besides, the 49ers have been fine without Samuel, and Jordan Mason is more than capable of handling the workload if McCaffrey sits. In fact, it behooves the 49ers to let McCaffrey sit to not only get healthy, but to let Mason and others get some momentum for the playoffs. There is more to gain than to lose if the 49ers keep them out, which is why it is the best course of action.
