The San Francisco 49ers received more bad injury news on Thursday when an expert suggested running back Christian McCaffrey could miss “a couple of months” due to his bout with Achilles tendonitis.
Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that McCaffrey can still fully recover from the injury. But after speaking with Dr. Kenton Fibel, medical director of the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks, the journalist warned the 49ers not to expect McCaffrey to return anytime soon.
McCaffrey traveled to Germany to consult with a specialist about his Achilles tendinitis, which Fibel considers a red flag. Although he did not personally examine McCaffrey, Fibel sees McCaffrey’s trip to Germany as a way to access treatments that are not yet approved in the United States by the Food and Drug Administration.
“I think it suggests more that this is an injury and that they think they’re going to need something else to augment their healing, which may take weeks or a couple of months instead of a week or two,” Fibel, a sports medicine specialist from Cedars-Sinai. Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles, he told Branch.
“This may be something where you realize the pathology is a little more serious and set aside a way to allow him to return this season, even if it takes him a month or two and he needs a longer recovery.”
San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey before an NFL preseason football game
Coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed that McCaffrey made the trip in hopes of resolving an issue that has plagued him since early in training camp and forced him to go on injured reserve to start the season.
“I know he’s going to see a specialist who I think can help him with his Achilles process,” Shanahan said Monday. “I think it will over the next few days and hopefully it will help.”
McCaffrey was injured early in training camp and missed four weeks of practice before returning to the field on a limited basis before the season opener on September 9 against the Jets.
He was removed late from that game and then went on injured reserve on September 14, two days after experiencing Achilles tendon soreness after a practice. He is eligible to return for a Week 6 game at Seattle, but there is no indication he is close to being able to play.
McCaffrey led the NFL last season with 2,023 yards from scrimmage and was tied for the league lead with 21 touchdowns, earning the AP Offensive Player of the Year award.
After missing 23 games due to injuries in his final two full seasons with Carolina, McCaffrey had been healthy the past two seasons.
He only missed one game combined in 2022-23: a meaningless Week 18 game last season for San Francisco when he had calf soreness. His 798 combined touches from scrimmage in the regular season and playoffs were the third most by any player in a two-year span in the last 10 years.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is dealing with back pain
Also injured on the offensive side of the ball are WR Deebo Samuel (L) and TE George Kittle (R).
The Niners have been hit hard by injuries early this season, with star receiver Deebo Samuel and All-Pro tight end George Kittle also missing time, and defensive tackle Javon Hargrave likely suffering a season-ending injury. season on Sunday.
Hargrave has a partially torn triceps that will require surgery. Shanahan said there’s a chance he could return if San Francisco makes a deep run in the playoffs, but the team plans to go the rest of the way without one of its best defensive players.
“It’s a big problem,” Shanahan said. “I thought he had his best game yesterday. I thought it was a huge factor, it really affected the quarterback in that game. It’s a big loss. He’s one of our best players. He was definitely going in the right direction and he was going to have a great year.”
In other injury news, quarterback Brock Purdy has back soreness after Sunday’s loss. An MRI came back clear and Purdy is listed as day to day.
San Francisco should get Kittle back this week after he missed a game with a hamstring injury suffered in practice last week.
Shanahan said he has not received any recent updates on the status of linebacker Dre Greenlaw, who is expected to return sometime in the second half of the season after rupturing his Achilles tendon in the Super Bowl.