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Nick Wagoner, ESPN writer
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — After a long and often painful wait, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey said he is ready to make his 2024 season debut on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“The last eight weeks have been extremely unfortunate,” McCaffrey said. “For me, it’s very hard to be injured. It’s hard physically, mentally and emotionally, especially when it doesn’t go as you planned. It wasn’t what you expected. Some things just went wrong, but now I feel great. Ready to go.”
McCaffrey missed the first eight games of the season with bilateral Achilles tendinitis. On Friday, he completed his first full week of practice since before the start of the season and will be activated from injured reserve in time to play against the Bucs.
Officially, McCaffrey is listed as questionable on the team’s injury report, but coach Kyle Shanahan made it clear Friday that it would take a significant turn of events for the star running back to not be activated Saturday and play Sunday.
The 49ers released running back Patrick Taylor Jr. on Friday night, opening a roster spot for McCaffrey.
“We’ll take him off the injured list tomorrow and then he’ll be ready,” Shanahan said. “Unless something crazy happens on this plane ride, I should be good to go tomorrow once I get out of IR.”
McCaffrey’s recovery from a calf injury and subsequent Achilles problem has had many stops and starts, but he has finally gained momentum toward a return in recent weeks. The Niners placed McCaffrey on injured reserve on September 14 after he was listed as questionable and then a surprise before the season opener on September 9 against the New York Jets.
That followed a training camp in which McCaffrey participated very little when Shanahan announced he was dealing with a calf strain in early August. Shanahan later revealed that McCaffrey was also dealing with Achilles tendon pain.
When the Niners placed McCaffrey on injured reserve, Shanahan said they did so in part to protect McCaffrey from himself, giving him a chance to rest and recover as much as possible. Then, when the Niners were in Los Angeles to play the Rams on Sept. 22, McCaffrey traveled to Germany to meet with a specialist and receive treatment on his Achilles tendon.
McCaffrey declined to elaborate on that trip Friday, but acknowledged that he was willing to explore all avenues necessary to return to the field.
“I keep all that private,” McCaffrey said. “When you’re on IR and you’re hurt, you do anything to get back. So now I feel good. That’s all that matters.”
That trip to Germany seemed to at least give McCaffrey some sort of timeline for his return. While he has been eligible to come off injured reserve for about a month, the Niners and McCaffrey have been eyeing Sunday’s game in Tampa, Florida, having been off the bye for a while.
During the bye week, McCaffrey participated in some simulated practice activities, which went well enough to open his practice window on Monday. He then participated in all of this week’s practices without any apparent setbacks. Once he got through the team’s traditionally longest and most grueling Thursday session, Shanahan told KNBR radio that he hoped McCaffrey would be ready to go.
While McCaffrey was absent, the 49ers finished 4-4, but his return to practice offered a jolt of energy after the break.
“It’s great. 2-3 like [Michael] “Jordan, he’s the man,” linebacker Fred Warner said. “Reigning offensive player of the year, one of the best players and people I’ve ever been around, so it’s good to see him back.”
McCaffrey offered some details about his recovery on Friday, noting that he didn’t attend as many meetings as he normally would because he was constantly doing things to help his body. McCaffrey said he spent most of his time receiving treatment, doing prehab and rehab, training and making sure he got enough sleep and rest when he could.
When he finally returned to practice on Monday, McCaffrey said his overwhelming feeling was gratitude.
“Sometimes it can be dark, and especially with something like this where you feel like you have to watch games, you feel physical pain,” McCaffrey said. “There are a lot of things involved in this. I think about football every day of my life. It consumes about 98% of my life, so when it doesn’t go well, it can be very difficult. But the only thing I know is that it makes you Realize how blessed and lucky you are to play when you’re on that field.”
While McCaffrey appears ready to return, the Niners have other key players who are either out or listed as questionable as well.
Cornerback Charvarius Ward will not play against the Bucs as he remains away from the team following the death of his young daughter. Defensive tackle Kevin Givens (groin) and receiver Chris Conley (hamstring) have also been ruled out.
Defensive end Nick Bosa (hip) and receiver Deebo Samuel (rib, oblique) are among the top Niners listed as questionable. Bosa suffered a hip injury in practice Wednesday and didn’t do much in practice Thursday and Friday.
“He couldn’t do much,” Shanahan said. “He was definitely extremely limited. I hope he’s OK, but we’ll see on Sunday.”
