The San Francisco 49ers have been anxiously awaiting the return of star running back Christian McCaffrey, who has been dealing with a calf injury and lingering Achilles tendinitis. In a related development, head coach Kyle Shanahan provided an update on the 28-year-old running back’s status in the middle of the 2024 NFL season.
McCaffrey went on injured reserve September 14, a month after Shanahan confirmed the 49ers star’s calf injury. As time goes on, his name is beginning to be bandied about as a possible returner. The San Francisco franchise is coming off a bye week, which is a good time to provide information on injured players.
“We’re on the right track since we left him out and went through these really slow steps. He’s coming along. He hasn’t had any setbacks and, hopefully, he’ll have a really good week and we can put him in practice next week, which obviously would be very important for us,” Shanahan told KNBR Radio in a final update on the status of McCaffrey, who hasn’t played this season for the 49ers.
The possibility of McCaffrey starting the season opener against the New York Jets is a long shot, as Shanahan has decided to take care of him and give him time to fully recover. The NFC West is very competitive, with three teams at 4-4, including the 49ers, who are fighting to make the playoffs and will want to count on their star running back for this key moment of the season.
Christian McCaffrey, running back of the San Francisco 49ers
The process for McCaffrey to return to the 49ers
McCaffrey, who has been on injured reserve for a month and a half, has a specific timetable to return to the team. San Francisco has 21 days to activate the running back to the active roster once the 49ers open the player’s practice window.
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49ers News: Kyle Shanahan reveals how and when Christian McCaffrey will return
If they fail to do so, the 28-year-old star will return to the non-football injury list for the remainder of the season. Shanahan wishes McCaffrey could be available for the November 10 meeting with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after the bye week.
Shanahan spoke about the return of Dre Greenlaw
Dre Greenlaw injured his Achilles tendon while celebrating a 49ers touchdown in the Super Bowl against the Kansas City Chiefs, and there has been little information about his return to the field since. In addition to talking about McCaffrey, Shanahan addressed the linebacker situation. “I think Dre is getting close,” Shanahan said, via 49ersWebzone.com.
“It will be almost a week to a week, which means if everything goes well, it will be a week sooner than a week later for whatever diagnosis is given. I don’t want to put a timeline on it,” the San Francisco franchise head coach concluded.
