Christian McCaffrey injury update: 49ers placing RB on injured reserve, star out at least next four games

San Francisco 49ers star running back Christian McCaffrey expressed confidence in his ability to play at the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday earlier this week. The days following those comments, however, have changed the All-Pro’s situation rather dramatically. The club is placing the star back on injured reserve, CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones reported Saturday.

This comes after the team had already ruled the 28-year-old out of their Week 2 matchup on Friday. Now, McCaffrey will be sidelind a minimum of four weeks. The earliest he’s set to return is in Week 6 when the team visits the Seattle Seahawks for a “Thursday Night Football” matchup. 

Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Wednesday said, “I’ve never considered that” when talking about putting McCaffrey on injured reserve, but that has since changed after the running back’s setback with his calf/Achilles injury.

“It’s [injured reserve] something we are considering now,” Shanahan said at his Friday press conference. “Yesterday was his worst day. It’s on and off. Yesterday having the most pain is something we are going to be discussing in the next 24 hours.”

Sunday will be McCaffrey’s second missed game in San Francisco, only missing the 49ers’ Week 18 regular-season finale against the Rams last season. The 49ers average 6.8 yards per play with McCaffrey on the field versus 5.3 yards per play when he is not on the field since he joined the team.

McCaffrey on/off splits with 49ers

McCaffrey earned 2023 NFL Offensive Player of the Year honors after leading the league in rushing yards (1,459), scrimmage yards (2,023) and co-leading the NFL in touchdowns (21) with Miami Dolphins running back Raheem Mostert, a former 49er.

McCaffrey’s understudy, Jordan Mason, balled out in his absence in Week 1 on “Monday Night Football” against the New York Jets with 147 rushing yards and a touchdown on 28 carries, and will start again Week 2. That made him the ninth different 100-yard rusher since Shanahan took over as the 49ers head coach in 2017. That’s tied for the most 100-yard rushers for a team’s head coach in the last seven years along with Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh.