McCaffrey Set for Return to 49ers Practice – The San Francisco 49ers can breathe a sigh of relief. Combo back Christian McCaffrey seems to be 100% and healed from the calf injury that had him sidelined for the majority of training camp.
According to ESPN’s senior NFL insider Adam Schefter, McCaffrey is expected to practice on Tuesday with six days remaining before the 49ers open the regular season with a big prime time matchup against Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets.
McCaffrey fought through injury concerns before the season even began, as a calf flare up forced him to miss time during training camp and the preseason. He also played a combined 10 games during the 2020 and 2021 seasons while he was a member of the Carolina Panthers.
He has been an iron man since making the move to the Bay area, bouncing back from a durability standpoint in recent years and took the field in all 17 games in 2022 and 16 games last season.
It was just another great season for McCaffrey. He led the NFL with 1,459 rushing yards while adding 564 receiving yards out of the backfield and 21 total touchdowns. He earned the Offensive Player of the Year as a result, adding to a pristine resume that also includes three Pro Bowl nods and two First-Team All-Pro selections.
While the 49ers will not be able to replicate his overall versatility and ability to completely change a game every time he touches the rock, they do have some other capable options at the running back position if he is sidelined.
Jordan Mason has averaged 5.6 yards per carry in short burst over the past two seasons. Rookie Isaac Guerendo had one of the best athletic profiles of any running back in the 2024 draft.
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Update: WR Pearsall on NFI After Being Shot – The San Francisco 49ers placed rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall on the reserve/non-football injury list on Monday, one day after he was released from the hospital.
Pearsall suffered a gunshot wound to the chest during an attempted robbery outside of an autograph signing at Union Square in San Francisco on Saturday afternoon and was hospitalized before being released Sunday. Pearsall’s mother wrote on social media her son was “in good spirits” on Sunday.
Pearsall will spend at least a month on the reserve/NFI list while recovering from the gunshot, which means he will miss at least the first four games.
San Francisco spent the 31st-overall pick of the 2024 draft on the former Florida star, who bad luck dealing with a shoulder injury during the preseason and returned to practice last week.
The 49ers’ season begins next Monday night against the New York Jets at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
