49ers star RB Christian McCaffrey returns to practice

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — In the most significant step he has taken in his recovery from Achilles tendonitis, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey returned to practice.

The Niners officially opened McCaffrey’s 21-day practice window on Monday afternoon, meaning he has three weeks to prove he’s ready to be activated from injured reserve to the 53-man roster.

Sure enough, McCaffrey was on the practice field and warming up with his teammates during a roughly two-minute viewing period open to the media. For his teammates, McCaffrey’s return was a welcome sight, and one noted that McCaffrey’s fresh legs made him advance quickly compared to everyone else during a team drill.

“It’s an awesome feeling to see that 2-3 doing his extensive warm-up and a million high knees before practice,” left tackle Trent Williams said. “It was great to see.”

While McCaffrey and the 49ers will have time to see how he does in practice before including him in any games again, there has been optimism around the team that he will be available Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as long as this week goes well. .

For most of the last few weeks, the Niners have this week targeted McCaffrey’s possible return as he continued to work on the tendinitis that kept him out of the team’s first eight games.

Before San Francisco took its bye last week, coach Kyle Shanahan again suggested that McCaffrey would begin practicing on Monday, as long as his simulated practice work last week went smoothly.

“As long as everything goes well, hopefully we can get back to training next week,” Shanahan said on Oct. 28.

McCaffrey originally went on injured reserve on September 14 after dealing with tendinitis and a calf injury that began to hamper him in early August. While McCaffrey recovered from the calf issue, Achilles tendonitis persisted and eventually led McCaffrey to travel to Germany to meet with a specialist while the 49ers were in Los Angeles to play the Rams on September 22.

While backup Jordan Mason has fared well in McCaffrey’s place (Mason is third in the league in rushing yards per game (85.6) and sixth in yards per carry among running backs (5.1), the Niners have had problems finishing drives in the red zone. They rank 28th in the nfl in red zone touchdown rate, scoring on 48.6% of drives within the opponent’s 20.

McCaffrey scored 21 total touchdowns in 2023 on his way to Offensive Player of the Year honors.

“[You] “We could probably put him in any offense, it’ll make them better,” Williams said. “Obviously our offense is tailored to him and some of his strengths, so it’s definitely going to be a tremendous boost for us.”

Shanahan indicated last week that McCaffrey’s workload when he returns will also depend on what he looks like in practice.

“The expectation is to see how he is when he comes back and then evaluate him as he goes,” Shanahan said last week. “Of course, the hope is that everything will return to normal and be perfect. That’s what we all strive for, but you have to act intelligently and you have to evaluate it every day. See with our own eyes what he tells us “That will be something we are constantly working on.”

The 49ers also opened the practice window for offensive lineman Jon Feliciano on Monday. Feliciano has missed the first half of the season with a knee injury. Receiver Jauan Jennings (hip) and kicker Jake Moody (sprained right ankle) also returned to the practice field Monday and Williams offered some hope that linebacker Dre Greenlaw could have his practice window open soon as he continues to recover from the Achilles tear he suffered. at the Super Bowl in February.

“Definitely super happy for [McCaffrey] that he turned the corner and was able to go out and do what he loved again,” Williams said. “I even caught a glimpse of Greenlaw running with a helmet on. “For both of us, just seeing that got us going.”