Deebo Samuel sets NFL record for receiving yards without a single catch

Deebo Samuel scored on an 80-yard hook-and-ladder play in San Francisco’s 36-30 win over Arizona, taking a lateral from Mike Evans and running into the end zone. Samuel finished with 80 receiving yards and a touchdown despite recording no catches, setting an NFL record for receiving yards without a reception and surpassing Timmy Brown’s 65-yard mark from 1961. He also had two carries for 14 yards and recovered Arizona’s late onside kick as the 49ers improved to 3-0. Evans left the game with a rib/oblique injury, adding to San Francisco’s receiving corps injuries and potentially increasing Samuel’s role.
Samuel said the 49ers had walked through the hook-and-ladder only once that week, and recalled thinking that once Evans drew two defenders, he could get around them and find open space.
Christian McCaffrey praised Samuel’s work and said, “I don’t think he gets talked about enough. He’s an absolute baller,” adding that Samuel looked better than before he left and had shown up and worked throughout camp.
Tight end Luke Farrell’s block on the cornerback helped create the sideline lane for Samuel’s score, George Kittle said, crediting Farrell as the play’s “unsung hero.”
Samuel also returned four kicks in the game, in addition to his two carries and the 80-yard scoring play.
San Francisco’s injury absences extended well beyond Evans: the 49ers were already without Ricky Pearsall for the season and had also lost Christian Kirk, Jake Tonges, De’Zhaun Stribling and Demarcus Robinson.
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