The San Francisco 49ers are set to get the reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year back. Christian McCaffrey is set to return to practice for the first time since going on injured reserve on Sept. 14, the team announced Monday.
If McCaffrey has a good week of practice, he is set to make his season debut Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. McCaffrey has experienced no setbacks in his physical therapy over the past month, this after missing over two months with Achilles tendinitis in both legs.
"He's had no setbacks, so it looks like we're on track," 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said last Monday as San Francisco headed into its bye week, via a team transcript. "He's going to hit it hard this week while we're gone and kind of simulate some practice stuff for himself."
A first-team All-Pro at running back last season, McCaffrey had 272 carries for 1,459 yards and 14 touchdowns while also adding 67 catches for 564 yards and seven touchdowns. McCaffrey led the NFL in yards from scrimmage (2,023) and tied for the league lead in scrimmage touchdowns (21), also leading the league in rushing yards.
McCaffrey finished with 25 scrimmage touchdowns this season including playoffs, the most in a season in 49ers history and the most by any player in a season since LaDainian Tomlinson in 2006. McCaffrey became just the fourth player to win the rushing title in wire-to-wire fashion since 1970, joining O.J. Simpson (1973, 1975), Walter Payton (1977) and Emmitt Smith (1995).
McCaffrey tied the NFL record for most consecutive games scored with a touchdown (including postseason) with 17, a streak that was snapped in Week 10 of the 2023 season. He led the NFL in 100-yard rushing games (seven), also having a league-high four games with a rushing and receiving touchdown.
In McCaffrey's absence, Jordan Mason has 685 rushing yards and is averaging 5.1 yards per carry. The 49ers are third in the league in yards per carry (5.1) and fourth in rushing yards per game (149.0).