Christian McCaffrey (Photo via Getty Images)
Christian McCaffrey is one of the most dynamic running backs in the NFL and is one of the key reasons the 49ers always have a good offense. However, he has not played a snap in 2024 because of a lingering Achilles tendinitis injury and the news keeps worsening.
It was believed he wouldn’t be away from the organization for too long, but recent reports suggest the opposite. McCaffrey recently flew to Germany to meet with a specialist, and bad news followed as he is now set to miss at least another couple of months of the season.
?BREAKING: Following his meeting with a specialist in Germany, #49ers star RB Christian McCaffrey is set to miss another couple months.
Who knows when we will see CMC playing again…
(Via San Francisco Chronicle) pic.twitter.com/engGd8bdku
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) September 26, 2024
Of course, there were high hopes that McCaffrey would receive positive news from the visit.
“I know he’s going to see a specialist that I believe can help him with his Achilles process,” 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters on Monday. “I think he’s doing that over these next few days, and hopefully, it’ll help.”
On Sept. 14, McCaffrey was placed on the Injured Reserve list after missing the team’s Week 1 game against the New York Jets. The best-case scenario was that he could return in Week 5, but that is now extremely doubtful.
This could turn into a season-ruining announcement for San Francisco after the team has already started the year 1-2 with losses to the Vikings and Rams.
The 49ers Rushing Attacks Has Held Strong Without Christian McCaffrey
Luckily for the 49ers, the team’s rushing attack has performed well, even without McCaffrey.
Jordan Mason has filled in for the injured superstar and put together a good three games now. He’s collected 324 rushing yards and two touchdowns with his most notable performance coming in Week 1.
Just before their season opener against the Jets, San Francisco announced that McCaffrey would be out, and Mason balled out with 147 yards and one touchdown, averaging 5.3 yards per carry.
It will now be seen if that can withstand deep into the season.