Two key factors will help 49ers weather WCC IR period originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
MINNEAPOLIS — Coach Kyle Shanahan hinted on Friday that the 49ers were considering placing Christian McCaffrey in injured reserve, and on Saturday, San Francisco will reportedly make this a reality..
The reigning Offensive Player of the Year will miss at least four games and will not be eligible to return to practice until Week 6 at the earliest, when the 49ers travel to Seattle to face the Seahawks.
“It’s something we’re looking at now,” Shanahan said Friday after practice. “Yesterday was his worst day. It’s on and off, but with yesterday being the worst day he’s had, it’s something we’ll discuss here in the next 24 hours.”
McCaffrey has been dealing with a calf strain and, perhaps more seriously, Achilles tendonitis since the start of training camp in July.
The All-Pro said Wednesday that the injury was not related to the calf strain that had him on injury reports for late 2023. McCaffrey sounded confident he would play in Sunday’s game with the Minnesota Vikingsbut Shanahan ruled it out on Friday.
While losing McCaffrey for any length of time isn’t ideal, this could be the best part of the season for the 49ers without one of their best players. Jordan Mason proves himself an efficient running back with 28 carries for 147 yards San Francisco wins 32-19 over New York Jetsbut the toughest part of their schedule comes later in the final stretch of the season.
Once the 49ers finish their stay in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, they will head to Los Angeles to face division rivals the Rams on Sept. 22 and then host the New England Patriots September 29 and Arizona Cardinals October 6th.
The 49ers’ game at Seattle on Thursday, October 10 in Week 6 could be the toughest matchup of the early season.
While waiting for McCaffrey to return, Shanahan is confident in the stable of running backs he has, which includes Isaac Guerendo, third-round pick in 2024 draft and two veterans in Patrick Taylor and Ke’Shawn Vaughn, who could be elevated to the practice squad for multiple games, if necessary.
“Taylor had a really good OTA and training camp with us,” Shanahan said. “He had a little setback when he got hurt, but he came back and finished strong last week, that last preseason game.
“Guerendo missed so much time. But then when he had those two games, he was in good shape. He looked good in those games, and he looked the same in training.”
Mason technically started the season as a backup, but Shanahan never really thought of it that way. Undrafted Free Agent worked diligently during the offseason to become not only a better running back, but also a reliable receiver and target for Brock Purdy.
The Georgia Tech product is one of many backs who have found success in Shanahan’s system. After all, during Shanahan’s first six seasons with the 49ers, they had a different lead rusher each season.
“It’s different having a third guy already,” Shanahan said. “But we never really looked at Elijah (Mitchell) or JP as two or three guys. I think those guys are capable of being a part of the team, as Elijah has shown in the past. And JP is, too. For those two new guys, when their opportunity comes, I think they’ll be ready.”
