All thing considered, the 49ers received a good sign from injured running back Christian McCaffrey at practice Wednesday.
While San Francisco certainly would love to see the reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year fully participate, the fact that McCaffrey was limited in practice as he deals with a calf strain and Achilles tendinitis was a welcome sight for coach Kyle Shanahan.
“I'm not a doctor either, but I take that as positive," Shanahan told reporters Wednesday when asked about McCaffrey's status as a limited practice participant.
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And despite the star back missing San Francisco's 32-19 win over the New York Jets on Monday night at Levi's Stadium, Shanahan hasn't contemplated placing McCaffrey on injured reserve to make sure he's healthy for the rest of the 2024 NFL season.
“No, I've never considered that," Shanahan said of placing McCaffrey on IR. "I was considering him to play last week, so definitely not thinking about four weeks off.”
Shanahan views CMC's participation in today's practice as a positive sign and "never considered" placing him on IR 👀 pic.twitter.com/49EewrpeAy
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) September 11, 2024
McCaffrey also went into Week 1 confident he would face the Jets, but he was deactivated 90 minutes before kickoff when he didn't quite feel 100 percent upon walking into the stadium. The All-Pro is taking the same mindset into Week 2 against the Minnesota Vikings as he deals with the lower-leg issues.
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“My mentality is I’m playing this week,” McCaffrey told reporters Wednesday in the 49ers' locker room. “That’s where I’m at. That’s how I am every week. I’m not lying. As soon as a player says, ‘Maybe I’ll play, maybe I won’t,’ that’s not a good mentality to go into a week with when you’re kind of on the fence.
"For me, I’m ready to go.”
There is no one in the NFL like McCaffrey, and the 49ers' odds of winning are much better when he's on the field than on the sideline. But third-year running back Jordan Mason stepped up nicely in his teammate's absence against the Jets, so McCaffrey might be able to take a little more time to make sure he's 100 percent before he returns to the gridiron.
But for now, an IR stint appears very unlikely.
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