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San Francisco 49ers’ running back Christian McCaffrey carries the ball against the Seattle Seahawks during the first half in the NFC Wild Card playoff game at Levi’s Stadium

The San Francisco 49ers wish they were the NFC representative in the Super Bowl this season, gearing up for another rematch against the Kansas City Chiefs. However, after a 6-11 season, the 49ers did not even sniff the NFL Playoffs with a last-place finish. Inconsistencies and a plethora of injuries are the primary culprits for their failures. The injuries started in training camp after offensive linemen Jon Feliciano and Spencer Burford both went down during the same week of practice. Yet, the most important injury transpired just before the season opener against the New York Jets when reigning offensive player of the year Christian McCaffrey suffered a calf injury.

The injury blindsided San Francisco, according to linebacker Fred Warner.

“It came out of nowhere for him, honestly,” Warner said on ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show. “I feel like, talking to him, I’ve talked to him throughout all the offseason since he’s been here, and he felt great. He got married and was on cloud nine, thinking, All right, we’re coming back to win a Super Bowl, coming off an Offensive Player of the Year type of year last year. And so, it was a shock to him, a shock to us.”

While initially thought to be a minor, McCaffrey’s wound quickly spiraled into near season-ending. Costing him a total of 10 weeks, the running back left no stone unturned in trying to recover. He took a flight to Russia in order to heal what eventually became bilateral Achilles tendonitis. Once returning, McCaffrey played just four games before injuring his PCL and ending his season.

Despite the injury-ridden campaign, McCaffrey’s health is starting to take a turn in the right direction, according to his father.

Shedding Light on Christian McCaffrey’s Recovery

While making his rounds on radio row in preparation for Super Bowl 59, Ed McCaffrey, Christian’s father, spoke to Front Office Sports. He was quickly asked about Christian McCaffrey’s recovery and gave a positive outlook.

“He’s doing great,” McCaffrey said. “He should be fully healthy this week by next week, and he’ll have a full offseason to train.”

The news of McCaffrey finally being healthy is what San Francisco 49ers fans have been waiting for. San Francisco’s offense was out of sorts without McCaffrey last season, and even when he returned, they could not hit their stride. Getting CMC back in the fold, fully healthy, should be able to unlock the offense once again and provide a major boost to their Super Bowl chances.

49ers Thankful to get McCaffrey Back

The San Francisco 49ers know they need Christian McCaffrey in order to make a deep playoff run. One player extremely happy for McCaffrey’s heathy is Warner, who knows what it means it have the Pro Bowl running back on the field.

“He’s one of our best players, if not the best,” Warner states. “So, I’m excited for him, going into this season, to just get back healthy, get back out on the field. We need him. We need him in order to be successful. You saw it. And then, obviously, dealing with a bunch of other injuries this past season. We just got to wipe that, put that away.”

In 31 games with the 49ers, McCaffrey has totaled 2,407 rushing yards, 134 receptions, 1,174 receiving yards, and 31 total touchdowns.

Sterling Bennett is a Heavy.com contributor covering the NFL. He has half a decade of experience as a sports broadcaster at 95.7 The Game covering the San Francisco 49ers as part of the weekly “Overtime” show, where he covered Super Bowl 58. Bennett was the Golden State Warriors Network Coordinator from 2020-2024, where he was responsible for all gameday radio broadcasts, including the 2022 NBA Finals. More about Sterling Bennett