Is Christian McCaffrey The Starting Running Back For The 49ers When He Returns?

San Francisco running back Christian McCaffrey (Achilles) has now missed eight weeks of NFL action due to bilateral Achilles' tendonitis. It's been one of the most frustrating situations for fantasy managers in recent history, as the No. 1 overall pick in many fantasy drafts was used on the former Panther.

His absence has led many fantasy teams to losing records, and his return is desperately needed for those teams who lack multiple other star players. His real-life team has also struggled more than usual in his absence, and are 4-4 heading into their Week 9 bye. In his stead, RBs Jordan Mason and Isaac Guerendo have played very well, though.

So will he be the starting running back for SF when he returns?

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Will Christian McCaffrey Start For The 49ers When He Returns?

Yes. He's one of the best backs in the league. There's no question he will start. The only question is how much of a role he has, at least initially, and how healthy he is when he makes it back. His injury, Achilles Tendonitis, is an overuse injury, meaning it can't heal without rest and can come back after heavy loads are consistently placed on the tendon.

INJURY UPDATE: Christian McCaffrey (achilles) remains ‘on track’ for a Week 10 return vs @Buccaneers pic.twitter.com/IKsbu7MOJx

— The Fantasy Source (@FantasySource_) October 27, 2024

It's thus certainly possible he could re-aggravate his injury if he's given too large of a workload. However, San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan has never shied away from giving CMC a monster amount of touches. There really isn't much way of knowing exactly how healthy he'll be when he returns.

He's had plenty of time off, though.

Christian McCaffrey Fantasy Football Outlook

He has legendary upside shared by few other players in the past decade. Two finishes at RB1 and two finishes at RB2 in full-PPR scoring can only be accomplished by an elite NFL talent. That's what he is. It's irresponsible to bench a player that's been a league-winner four times.

CHRISTIAN MCCAFFREY 65 YARDS TO THE HOUSE pic.twitter.com/TPh0E1ruyQ

— NFL Fantasy Football (@NFLFantasy) September 10, 2023

He'll be a locked-in RB1 if he gets anything resembling the workload he's had in previous years. It's too risky to bench him. He could return to league-winner status.

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