Niners’ Christian McCaffrey expects typical workload in opener

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — If all goes according to plan in Monday night’s opener against the New York Jets, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey figures he’ll not only play but also play his usual number of snaps.

After missing most of training camp with a calf and Achilles injury, McCaffrey returned to practice Tuesday and also participated in sessions Thursday and Friday.

McCaffrey spoke to Bay Area media for the first time since his injury on Friday, and while he didn’t provide detailed answers on anything health-related, he made it clear what he expects to happen Monday.

Asked if there was any doubt he would play against the Jets, McCaffrey simply said, “No.”

Asked if he would accept his usual heavy workload, McCaffrey said: “I hope so.”

Earlier Friday, Niners general manager John Lynch told KNBR radio in San Francisco that McCaffrey “will be on the field and ready to play” against the Jets assuming he continues through the rest of the week of practice.

Niners coach Kyle Shanahan first announced that McCaffrey had torn his calf on Aug. 6, noting that the star running back would miss the entire preseason and a few weeks of practice.

That’s exactly what happened, as McCaffrey didn’t officially return to training until Tuesday’s “bonus” workout, despite having been running and working out on the side for a few weeks before that.

Although McCaffrey has been officially listed as limited in recent days, he has been moving around the practice field without any visible restrictions. He said he felt “much better” Friday.

“He looks like Christian to me,” running game coordinator Chris Foerster said. “You have to practice, so guys that haven’t practiced, I don’t want to say they’re rusty, but there’s always a little something that goes on just because they haven’t done it every day. There’s just that hard work every day, day in and day out. But he looks good.”

Since the Niners didn’t have to release an official injury report until Thursday, the addition of the Achilles tendon to McCaffrey’s injury description raised some eyebrows. Shanahan said Thursday that the Achilles tendon was related to the calf and was part of the initial injury that sidelined McCaffrey in early August.

McCaffrey said the Achilles tendon was “not a problem” when asked if there were any long-term concerns. In a mid-August interview, he said he could have played if there was a regular-season or playoff game coming up.

His teammates expect a solid reminder of the 1,459 rushing yards, 564 receiving yards and 21 total touchdowns McCaffrey posted in 2023 en route to the NFL Offensive Player of the Year award.

“He has incredibly high standards for himself,” tight end George Kittle said. “He takes it very seriously … so I think Christian is going to have another big year. I think he’ll probably be in contention for the MVP award.”

While McCaffrey was recovering, Jordan Mason emerged as the primary back, making it clear he would be the first to take any snaps McCaffrey might miss. The Niners also have rookie Isaac Guerendo and veteran Patrick Taylor Jr. at fullback. Guerendo was also limited in practice this week with a groin injury.

For now, McCaffrey said he’s not worried about anything other than getting ready for the Jets and getting the regular season underway.

“You have to take things one step at a time,” McCaffrey said. “I don’t like to look at what’s going to happen. Every action has a life of its own. Just do what you have to do with each action, take care of the things you can control and go from there.”