49ers running back Christian McCaffrey missed part of the Week 7 loss to the Falcons with what had been called a thigh injury during the game. By Monday, it had been revised to a hamstring injury.
Nine days later, McCaffrey wasn’t able to practice because of it.
In the first official injury report issued by the 49ers since they said he had a thigh injury during the Week 7 loss, the 49ers say that McCaffrey missed practice due to a hamstring injury.
After the game in Atlanta, McCaffrey said it felt like his leg “just died on me.” On Wednesday, McCaffrey expressed optimism that he’ll play on Sunday against the Raiders.
“I had no idea [it was a hamstring injury],” McCaffrey said Wednesday, via Vic Tafur of The Athletic. “Sometimes the adrenaline and all these other things can get to you. . . . It wasn’t too bad. Having the bye week was awesome. But now I feel great.”
Still, not great enough to practice. Which creates the kind of mixed signals that conjure memories of the strange way in which the team handled McCaffrey’s 2024 Achilles injury, which resulted in his unexpected scratch for the regular-season opener.
Here’s the basic reality. He had a career-high 413 touches in 2025. He has 118 in seven games this year. Now 30, the workload can take a toll — especially in a 17-game season.