And to think Christian McCaffrey was the guy everyone was worried about.
After having his 2024 season ruined by bilateral Achilles tendinitis and a PCL strain, there was plenty of concern whether McCaffrey’s football age was more than his biological age of 29. Surely it was time to start sharing the load and reduce the carries and receptions to maximize whatever he had left to give.
Yet the 49ers have a 6-3 record and McCaffrey keeps bouncing off tacklers and bouncing off the turf as the driving force of the 49ers’ offense. Nick Bosa and Fred Warner are done for the season. Brock Purdy has missed seven games. Brandon Aiyuk is still rehabbing a torn ACL/MCL. George Kittle missed five games. Now the 49ers are worried about rookie defensive end Mykel Williams, who may have a torn ACL.
What kind of odds would have gotten that McCaffrey would be the one still standing?
The 49ers are working McCaffrey harder than they ever have since he arrived by trade in 2022. He rushed 28 games fo 106 yards and a touchdown in a 34-24 road win over the Giants. Caught five passes for 67 yards and a touchdown. The 34 touches (for 173 yards) are his most with the 49ers and only three shy of his career high of 37 when he was 23 years old and playing for the Carolina Panthers.
Time to stop worrying about McCaffrey and just enjoy the show. McCaffrey had 339 touches when he was the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year in 2023. He’s currently on pace for 434, more than the 403 he had in 2019 when he became the third NFL player to register 1,000-1,000 yards in rushing and receiving, joining Roger Craig and Marshall Faulk.
No back has ever done it twice, and McCaffrey is on pace for 1,126 yards rushing and 1,164 yards receiving.
The 49ers also got 53 yards on five carries from Brian Robinson Jr., who has adjusted to a secondary role as opposed to being in a two-back system in Washington. Coach Kyle Shanahan is unapologetic about McCaffrey’s use or overuse. He gives McCaffrey Wednesday off and talks about protecting him from himself.
Until Sunday, anyway. Then all bets are off.
“Christian’s always been pretty durable,” Shanahan said. “Last year he had something that never went away, then he hurt his knee on a random run in Buffalo. Christian is the most conditioned, prepared athlete I’ve ever been around. He’s such a big factor in blocking, running and passing. He’s one of the best players I’ve ever been around. I’d like to say he figured something out, but the guy goes as hard as he can every offseason, so there’s not much more to figure out.”
McCaffrey stuck to his M.O. of giving credit to his teammates and shrugging off his exploits with his usual “one game at a time, one play at a time explanation.” It may be a cliche, but it works for him.
Brian Robinson Jr. (3) finishes off an 18-yard touchdown run Sunday against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Getty Images
When McCaffrey reached 98 yards rushing and receiving, he became the became the seventh fastest player to gain 12,000 yards, massing the number in 104 games. The six men ahead of him are Edgerrin James (95), LaDainian Tomlinson (95), Eric Dickerson (97), Jim Brown (98), Faulk (102) and Barry Sanders (102).
All are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
What McCaffrey is doing has become so routine there really wasn’t a lot of postgame buzz about what he’d does it so often. Which is how he prefers it anyway.
“Coming out strong is important to us, it’s important for us to stay emotionally sharp and mentally sharp,” McCaffrey said. “Sometimes you might score early and not again to the fourth quarter. It’s all about taking one play at a time.”
After last week’s debacle in Houston, the 49ers went back to their belief in balance skewed toward the run if at all possible. They had 39 rushes — just as they did against Atlanta — and gained 159 yards.
“It’s the identity of our team,” left tackle Trent Williams told reporters. “Running the ball, possession the ball, converting third downs.”
In the late third and early fourth quarter and the Giants within 20-10, quarterback Mac Jones hit Kendrick Bourne for a 13-yard gain and then Shanahan proceeded to run the ball down New York’s throat with eight straight runs. McCaffrey got the first five and Robinson the last three, including an 18-yard touchdown run for a 27-10 lead.
To Shanahan, it was play-calling nirvana.
“The whole time you’re like, ‘Man, can you do it again and get away with it?,’ ” Shanahan said. “Maybe we should do a play-action or something off it.’ And then I just said, `Screw it, we’ll keep running it.’ And the guys scame through. it’s one of the most enjoyable drives you can have when it’s all running plays.”
McCaffrey was happy to see Robinson have his best game as a 49er. Besides his rushing yardage, Robinson broke a 41-yard kickoff return that helped set up the last 49es’ touchdown — a 3-yard run by McCaffrey.
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“He runs so hard and you could tell he’s been itching, and it might not be the way he wants it right now, but to have him is huge for me,” McCaffrey said. “He pushes me, and with the way he runs, if we can get that flow, I’m really excited. You couldn’t ask for a guy to come in with a better attitude. He just keeps pushing.”
Williams told reporters Robinson predicted a big day in advance.
“He said, `You know I don’t get a lot of carries but today I’m going to make the most of what I get,’ ” Williams said. “It’s one thing when a guy says he’s going to do something, another when he actually does it . . . Christian doesn’t leave a lot of crumbs on the table. He understands his role and he comes in ready to go.”
