ChristianMcCaffrey

News: 1 day agoMcCaffrey (undisclosed) said Sunday that he always planned to take a break during training camp and then "ramp back up," Vic Tafur of The Athletic reports.

Spin: McCaffrey returned to practice and participated in team drills Sunday after he had been sitting out with general "tightness" of late. The 30-year-old running back added Sunday that the media attention around his absence was a "firestorm" and that his plan all along was 8-to-10 practices to ramp up, a break and then another ramp up in advance of Week 1, according to Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area. McCaffrey recorded a career-high 311 carries for 1,202 yards and 10 touchdowns across 17 regular-season games last year. San Francisco will open the 2026 campaign versus the Rams on Thursday, Sept. 10.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: McCaffrey is back for his fifth season with the 49ers after a bounce-back 2025 campaign in which he led all running backs in snaps, routes, touches, targets, receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns and fantasy points. McCaffrey's rushing efficiency wasn't great (3.86 yards per carry), and he's entering his age-30 season after handling 450 touches (including the playoffs) in 2025. The history of overworked backs suggests we should expect a step back in 2026, but CMC is a unicorn, and the combination of his skill set and hefty usage in Kyle Shanahan's offense suggests he can overcome history. There's obvious risk here, but McCaffrey will be an elite option whenever he's on the field.