The San Francisco 49ers will enter the 2024 NFL season with high expectations following their Super Bowl 58 runner-up showing. The 49ers will have two MVP candidates returning to their offense; however, one of them, Christian McCaffrey, was dealt a concerning injury update during training camp on Tuesday.
McCaffrey has a calf strain and will be out of practice for a couple of weeks, per Matt Maiocco. Head coach Kyle Shannon informed reporters that McCaffrey's ailment should not be a long-term issue. He is unlikely to play during the preseason. Hopefully, the star running back undergoes a safe and speedy recovery.
Christian McCaffrey is arguably the best RB in the NFL. He finished the 2023-24 season with a career-high 1,459 yards yards, which ranked him first in the league. Furthermore, he amassed 14 touchdowns on 272 carries.
McCaffrey was considered an MVP candidate throughout the season and won the NFL's Offensive Player of the Year award. He came up huge for the 49ers during the postseason. Namely, his rushing efforts down the stretch of the games against the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions helped SF advance to reach the Super Bowl.
The 49ers rewarded McCaffrey with a market-resetting contract extension in early June. He signed a two-year extension, averaging $19 million per year.
Hopefully, Christian McCaffrey will bounce back stronger after he recovers from his injury. In the meantime, the 49ers will continue to navigate other roster challenges.
49ers face adversity during training camp
One of the biggest rumors surrounding the 49ers is their stall in contract talks with star wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
“Contract talks remain stalled, and it seems more likely that Aiyuk will be traded than work out an extension with San Francisco, NFL Network Insiders Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero reported Monday,” Nick Shook wrote for NFL.com. “Multiple teams are in play for the ascending receiver, but a deal is not in place at this time, per Garafolo and Pelissero.”
More rumors suggest Aiyuk could move to the Las Vegas Raiders or the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, it is unclear what the 49ers will do.
ESPN”s Adam Schefter revealed this insight on Tuesday afternoon:
“I don't expect Pittsburgh to be a landing spot at all,” Schefter said. “I think Pittsburgh, like a lot of teams, checked into this. Here's the price it would take from the 49ers, here's the price it would take from Brandon Aiyuk, and every team has to make a decision about whether or not that would work for them. Inevitably, with most teams, it's not gonna work, and that's why it's a hard trade to do.”
It will be interesting to see how SF handles their roster challenges ahead of their preseason debut.
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