The San Francisco 49ers will be without star running back Christian McCaffrey for a while.
The 49ers are placing McCaffrey on injured reserve, a person familiar with the situation told USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the team hadn’t yet announced the roster moe.
McCaffrey has been dealing with calf and Achilles injuries and the running back was sidelined in San Francisco’s Week 1 win against the New York Jets. He will now miss at least the next four games, first eligible to return in Week 6.
On Friday, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said there was a possibility that McCaffrey would go injured reserve.
“It’s something we’re considering now,’ Shanahan told reporters. ‘Yesterday was his worst day. It’s on and off, but with yesterday, having the most pain, it’s something we’re going to be discussing here in the next 24 hours’
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The 49ers will rely on running back Jordan Mason with McCaffrey missing a minimum of four games. Mason had career-highs in both carries (28) and rushing yards (147) in Week 1. San Francisco travels to Minnesota to take on the Vikings on Sunday.
‘I think (Mason) did a good job coming in,’ 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy said after the team’s Week 1 victory. ‘Obviously, Christian is the best in the league at running back and what he does. I’m not taking anything away from that. But I think (Mason) did a good job of coming in and filling in his void and doing his job allowing other guys to get open and allow us to run our offense.’
McCaffrey won NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 2023 and helped the 49ers reach Super Bowl 58. He’s produced 2,205 rushing yards, 20 rushing touchdowns, 119 catches, 1,028 receiving yards and 11 touchdown receptions in 27 regular-season games in San Francisco.
The 49ers acquired McCaffrey in a blockbuster trade with the Carolina Panthers in October 2022.
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