The San Francisco 49ers were already reeling from the news Brandon Aiyuk is out for the season with a knee injury that is worse than initially expected, and they are now likely facing at least another game without another All-Pro wide receiver in Deebo Samuel.

Samuel barely featured in San Francisco's dispiriting 28-18 defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, which dropped them to 3-4, because of an illness that left him struggling to breathe.

He played only snaps in the game before being ruled out in the second half and head coach Kyle Shanahan revealed in his Monday conference call that 2021 first-team All-Pro is in the hospital with pneumonia.

Shanahan said the 49ers sent Samuel, who has fluid in his lungs, to the hospital and that his condition worsened during the night. There is no timeline for his return to the field.

Samuel's participation in Sunday's primetime matchup with the Dallas Cowboys is clearly in serious doubt, and Shanahan said he is not sure whether Jauan Jennings, the 49ers' leading receiver, will be able to return from the hip injury that kept him out of the Chiefs game.

Regardless of whether Jennings plays, rookies Ricky Pearsall and Jacob Cowing are both likely set to see a significant increase in snaps due to the 49ers' adversity at wideout.

In further injury news, tight end George Kittle is day to day with a foot sprain, while veteran receiver Chris Conley is day to day with an ankle sprain.

San Francisco's success in recent times has in large part been built on the strength of its skill position players. With Aiyuk done for the season, Samuel in the hospital and Christian McCaffrey yet to return from Achilles tendiniti, that group is in dire straits.

Quarterback Brock Purdy has largely performed well despite a lack of continuity at the skill positions this year. However, Purdy had the worst game by passer rating of his career in Week 7 and eventually the hits become too much to overcome. The 49ers are suffering from the impact of Javon Hargrave's season-ending injury in the trenches on defense, while there remains a Dre Greenlaw-sized hole next to Fred Warner at linebacker.

Things are getting desperate for the 49ers, who need to find some way to channel a sense of desperation into an inspired performance against the Cowboys.

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