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49ers Rule Christian McCaffrey Out for two weeks after Jets clash Due to severe Injury crisis
The San Francisco 49ers will be without arguably their most important offensive weapon during Monday night’s season-opening tilt against the New York Jets.
Star running back Christian McCaffrey is inactive for the game while continuing to nurse a calf injury he sustained during the offseason, according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. McCaffrey had initially been listed as questionable for the game after being a limited participant in practice throughout the week.
With the 28-year-old sidelined, the Niners will lean more heavily on backup Jordan Mason and rookie third-stringer Isaac Guerendo.
McCaffrey is coming off a sensational season in 2023 during which he scored 21 total touchdowns and racked up a league-high 1,459 rushing yards to go with 564 receiving yards. His absence will be notable against a stalwart Jets defense.
The 49ers’ inactive list for Monday Night Football includes McCaffrey, quarterback Joshua Dobbs, cornerback Darrell Luter Jr., safety Talanoa Hufanga, defensive lineman Yetur Gross-Matos, linebacker Dee Winters and offensive lineman Ben Bartch.
It’s not immediately clear how long McCaffrey’s calf injury will keep him sidelined, but he didn’t participate in the preseason to get additional rest. That wasn’t enough for him to be available in Week 1, but he’ll hope to be back by Week 2 when San Francisco plays the Minnesota Vikings.
The San Francisco 49ers activated Trent Williams to the active roster ahead of Monday night’s showdown against the New York Jets. The team released offensive tackle Brandon Parker to make room for Williams.
Williams is a game-changer. Christian McCaffrey had one of the highest yards before contact per attempt in the NFL when Williams was on the field. That number dipped from 2.3 (third-highest in the NFL) to 1.83. Brock Purdy’s interception rate tripled without Williams on the field or in games when he didn’t play more than half of the snaps.
I’ve been saying it since 2020, and Nick Bosa is the only argument, but Williams is the best player on the Niners. He allows them to do so much more through the air and on the ground than they’d be able to if they had average-level left tackle play.
In addition, defensive lineman Sam Okuayinonu and safety Tracy Walker III were elevated from the practice squad to the active roster for tonight’s game. Walker will be a special teamer, while George Odum figures to start in Talanoa Hufanga’s place.
Okuayinonu can cover punts and kicks, but it’ll be interesting to see if the defense has enough confidence in him to rotate Okuayinonu into the defensive line rotation. Yetur Gross-Matos is doubtful, which means Leonard Floyd, Bosa, and 2023 fifth-round pick Robert Beal Jr. are your edge rushers.
