The San Francisco 49ers had a fantastic Week 17. Not only did they thump the Washington Commanders on the road, 27-10, but they also learned that the Philadelphia Eagles got upset by the Arizona Cardinals, which earned the Niners the No. 1 seed in the NFC. All that being said, it's not all that rosy for the 49ers, with superstar running back Christian McCaffrey suffering a calf injury in the third quarter of the Commanders game.

McCaffrey was not able to get back into the contest after sustaining the lower-body issue, but he downplayed the severity of the injury following the game (h/t Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle).

McCaffrey termed his calf issue “pretty minor,” but head coach Kyle Shanahan said it could have prevented him from playing in next week's regular-season finale against the Rams, if the 49ers still needed a win to grab the conference’s top seed. McCaffrey likely won’t play against Los Angeles and will have two weeks of rest before the 49ers host a divisional-playoff game.

Christian McCaffrey's health will be a top 49ers story heading into regular-season finale

Christian McCaffrey is relieved that the Niners have the No. 1 seed

McCaffrey's health will now be one of the biggest storylines in the coming days involving the 49ers. With the No. 1 seed in the NFC already in their bag, the 49ers will be wise to give McCaffrey a rest and not force him to see action in Week 18 when they play their regular-season finale at home versus NFC West division rivals Los Angeles Rams.

Before he left the contest against the Commanders, McCaffrey had racked up 64 rushing yards on 14 carries and also caught four of five targets for 27 receiving yards.

Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason could see expanded roles in Week 18 if McCaffrey gets ultimately ruled out for the Rams game.