The defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers already ruled out star running back Christian McCaffrey for Sunday’s road date against the Minnesota Vikings.
McCaffrey missed San Francisco’s season-opening win over the New York Jets with a calf/Achilles injury. The 49ers’ reporting of said injury ahead of the Monday night game was a big deal around the league. It seemed as if McCaffrey would be able to go.
About that? The injury is far more severe than first thought.
According to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, the 49ers are placing McCaffrey on injured reserve. This means that he’ll miss at least the next four games.
It’s not necessarily a surprise. San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters on Friday that an IR stint was possible. The 49ers are not going to risk a potential season-ending Achilles’ injury for the reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year.
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San Francisco 49ers to be without Christian McCaffrey for at least next month
Based on NFL injured reserve rules, the earliest McCaffrey will be able to return is Oct. 10 against the Seattle Seahawks.
Though, that seems highly unlikely. Said game is on Thursday night. McCaffrey would have to be activated that Monday in order to return to practice. It’s not reasonable given the short week.
Rather, the target game should be a rematch of last season’s Super Bowl against the Kansas City Chiefs on Oct. 20. Depending on how well the 49ers play, we could also be looking at McCaffrey not returning until after their Week 9 bye.
- Christian McCaffrey stats (2023): 1,459 rushing yards, 67 receptions, 564 receiving yards, 2,023 total yards, 21 TD
Obviously, this is a big hit for the 49ers’ offense.
Last week did see former undrafted rookie free agent Jordan Mason go for a career-high 147 yards in a blowout win over the Jets. Rookie fourth-round pick Isaac Guerendo should see more action, too. It also wouldn’t be a surprise if veteran Ke’Shawn Vaughn was activated off the practice squad.